NBA TRADE TALK: TDL over

[F Gump]

@"F Gump" what's your gut on this:

Is everything on hold with LM because of the tampering investigation against CHI and MIA?

No, I doubt it. It hasn't stopped either CHI or TOR from doing whatever else they have decided to do, so the idea it has some bearing on just a deal with DAL really makes no sense.

Do you think there is legitimate smoke to the possibility that the Mavs might be trying to work a three way with CHI and TOR?

The odds are very small, because 3 teams and because Mavs get stuff they need at attractive prices and because all the other barriers we have heard, and because multiplied over 3 teams, and etc etc etc. But ...

I do see things that can be used to make such a scenario necessary in a way, small though it may be.
*Brown can't be used as a salary match piece until Oct 1.
*Simply trading for LM using the TPE, without a big man outgoing, further clogs an already over-clogged big man rotation. But they don't want Powell at his salary.
*On the other hand, simply trading away DP to TOR, with both DP and Brown outgoing, over-thins the Mavs of bigs. 
*But a trade that has both of "DP/Brown outgoing" PLUS "LM incoming"? Ahhh, yeah.
*In addition, by combining both an LM trade and a Dragic trade into one, the outgoing salary-match pieces can be split between the two other teams, where neither gets a cumbersome payroll burden, and yet there's some value sent to each. Powell would definitely go to TOR, and then either Brown, Player X, or both might go to CHI.

It still means that you have to satisfy all of TOR, CHI, and LM in order to make that deal. So that keeps it way unlikely. But it's a scenario that does check some boxes that might otherwise be obstacles, so it makes a fun pipe dream to keep in mind until something else happens, or until Oct 2.