Getty Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks.
NBA Draft night is just hours away, after weeks of build up and rumors indicating that the Dallas Mavericks are looking to trade their No. 10 overall pick. Dallas’ front office is beginning to run low on time, but Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey still feels as if they’ll find a way to get a deal done.
In an article published on June 22, Bailey ran through five of his “bold predictions” for the 2023 NBA Draft. Amongst them was the idea of the Mavericks trading their first-round pick for a veteran.
“The Dallas Mavericks blatantly tanked (and were fined $750,000 for doing so) to close out the season,” Bailey wrote. “And they accomplished what they wanted to when the lottery secured them the 10th overall pick. But on a team that already has Luka Dončić and is hoping to re-sign Kyrie Irving, a mid-first-round rookie doesn’t make a ton of sense. For weeks, reporting has suggested Dallas is looking to trade its tanking prize for someone who can help right now. And it will find a taker on draft night. Adding a win-now player on Thursday could prove helpful in convincing Irving to re-sign, too. As he enters his age-31 season, he is likely interested in playing for a contender.”
Bailey’s prediction isn’t really all that bold. Again, it’s been widely reported that the Mavericks are looking to offload their selection in an effort to strengthen the roster around Irving and Dončić.
Proposed Trade Lands Mavericks Frontcourt Help in Exchange for No. 10 Pick
One of the teams that’s been most heavily linked to the Mavericks over the past week is the Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta reportedly has interest in moving up from No. 15 to No. 10 in an effort to select Duke center Dereck Lively.
In spirt of those rumors, Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz recently put together a mock trade between the two sides.
Atlanta Hawks Receive: No. 10 overall pick, PF Dāvis Bertāns, C JaVale McGee
Dallas Mavericks Receive: PF John Collins, C Onyeka Okongwu
A trade like Swartz’s may represent some of the best value that the Mavs could garner for No. 10. They would get the aforementioned veteran addition in Collins, while also getting some much needed depth for their frontcourt. Dallas trounced through last season in dire need of help down low. The lack of talent Jason Kidd was forced to use a carousel of middling big men last season and it just didn’t work.
Mavericks’ Desire to Trade 2023 Draft Pick is Well Documented
Ever since Dallas was locked into the No. 10 spot at the NBA Draft Lottery last month, Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer has been all over their interest in using the selection in a trade.
“There are other teams rival executives are already pinning as potential trade candidates,” Fischer reported on May 18. “Dallas avoided disaster by landing its top-10 protected pick at the No. 10 spot, and the Mavericks are certainly expected to explore the market for that selection in hopes of adding to their All-Star backcourt of Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving, the latter of which will become an unrestricted free agent this summer.”
He followed up the initial report weeks later, revealing that teams all around the association were aware that Dallas’ first rounder was on the trading block.
“Dallas is widely known to be evaluating trade possibilities with the 10th pick to bring reinforcements to Luka Dončić, as well as All-Star guard Kyrie Irving, who will become an unrestricted free agent,” he wrote on June 6.