Getty Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks.
The Dallas Mavericks‘ front office has shown some commitment to bringing in help for star guard Luka Doncic this season. Prior to the trade deadline, they made a splash by landing Kyrie Irving in a deal with the Brooklyn Nets.
Despite the acquisition of Irving, the team still isn’t performing at the highest level. They’ve won just 3 of their last 10 games, and are in danger of falling into the Play-In Tournament.
With that being said, it seems as if there’s still room for the roster to improve over the summer. An anonymous Western Conference general manager told Heavy Sports‘ Sean Deveney that he believes that the Mavs are the “right place” for Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green to end up.
Green’s current contract includes a player option that he can opt out of after the season, which would make him an unrestricted free agent.
“I have always thought Dallas would be the right place for him. Put him with Luka, another supercompetitive guy, and those two could really raise everyone’s level,” the source told Deveney. “Or they could drive everyone crazy, they could drive each other crazy and wind up at each other’s throats. I think Draymond is the exact right kind of guy you want with Luka, though, someone who cares about winning as much as he does.”
If Dallas was interested in landing Green, they’d be able to do so regardless if he opts in or out of his deal. If he opts in, the Warriors may look to trade him in order to maximize their return.
“The hope is that Draymond just decides to opt into the final year of his deal and they can proceed from there,” the source said. “You can trade him at that point, you don’t have to worry about a sign-and-trade and all the restrictions that come with that. You can work with him to find a place he wants to go. Or you can say to him, let’s give it one more run, be a leader, let’s win a championship here and we’ll pay you.”
Dillon Brooks Throws Shade at Luka Doncic Ahead of Mavs Matchup
Ironically enough, one of Green’s bigger rivals, Dillon Brooks, will be facing off against the Mavs on Saturday. He and the Memphis Grizzlies will be hosting Dallas for what should be an interesting matchup.
Unfortunately for the Mavericks, they’ll be without their superstar, Doncic, as he works his way back from a thigh injury.
When Brooks got word that the Slovenian star would be sidelined for Saturday’s showdown, he fired off a shot at Doncic.
“It’s goes to show that sometimes they ain’t ready to come back to a physical game,” Brooks said via Memphis News’ Damichael Cole.
Luka Doncic is out tonight and is listed as day-to-day due to a left thigh strain.
Dillon Brooks on Luka being out today:
“It’s goes to show that sometimes they ain’t ready to come back to a physical game.”
Dillon Brooks Calls Out Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving
Doncic wasn’t the only one that the outspoken guard had some words for. He also took the opportunity to add some flair to his potential matchup with Irving, who was listed as questionable on the Mavericks’ injury report due to a foot ailment/personal reasons.
“Now I can get him by myself today, so I want to see what he’s all about,” Brooks told ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. “He had a couple of words for me in Brooklyn, so I can’t wait to pick him up full every time and see him get exhausted.”
McMahon then spoke with Kyrie, and shared what Brooks had told him. Irving issued a response to the Grizzlies guard’s challenge.
“Dillon hopes every best player plays, just because it makes the game a lot better competitive-wise,” he told McMahon. “There’s been a lot going on with him, seeing him in the middle of all the Draymond stuff. I mean, it makes it great for our league, but at the same time there’s a maturity that we’ve got to have. Nothing should go over the line of personal stuff. I f we keep it still strictly on the floor, I think we all have a greater time, but once it gets personal, I mean you know what it turns into out there.”