(12-12-2025, 11:13 AM)Smitty Wrote: @MavsFilmRoom
“The expected suitors, which — as ESPN first reported — are expected to include Detroit, Atlanta and Toronto. Yet as several league sources indicated, the actual level of interest from the aforementioned teams remains to be seen.“

“As one league source shared, there are even some indications that the Mavericks are still considering upgrading this current core rather than parting with their veterans.”


This is from Sam Amick's latest article.

(12-12-2025, 11:29 AM)F Gump Wrote: I know this snippet of info  surprises some, but it shouldn't. Gaff is a good center who has much-needed big man skills (defend the rim, block shots, rebound, good scoring skills around the basket). We seem to have forgotten what its like when teams can dominate you inside and you lack the centers to stop them (stuck with DP, for example).

But teams value that a lot. 

In addition, because of his looming free agency, and the possibility youbmight be forced to a choice of matching a way-overpaid offer, or lose him, Mathurin is not as valuable as you might think. He's going to get a fairly sizable jump in pay, and that puts financial strrsss on the team that has him.

(12-12-2025, 11:58 AM)Winter Wrote: I agree with Dan that we don't truly know AD's value... and probably won't until we see a hard offer from a team. At that point, fans will at least know the baseline. We should know that soon enough.

The Mavericks have signaled that they would wait if the offer at the TDL wasn't good - they wanted to see Kyrie, AD, and Flagg play together. That sounds like FO message to bidders that we won't take a garbage offer, but there's some truth there. I can see why they would want to say that publically, but what is it really saying?

If Kyrie comes back with a reasonable game, AD stay healthy, and Flagg continues to get better... this team will not be a lottery team. But what kind of team is it? To put this a different way, is there really a meaningful one or two-year future that includes Kyrie, AD, and Flagg? Is this team competing for a championship? If you don't believe that, then aren't we pretty much wasting time with AD? (and Kyrie for that matter).

I get the idea of waiting until there's a better offer, but as a fan, that's about as unexciting a thing I can think of. I'll spend the rest of this season watching Flagg develop and hoping the injury prone players over 30 years old don't fall apart on me before we trade them.

(12-12-2025, 11:58 AM)Winter Wrote: I agree with Dan that we don't truly know AD's value... and probably won't until we see a hard offer from a team. At that point, fans will at least know the baseline. We should know that soon enough.

The Mavericks have signaled that they would wait if the offer at the TDL wasn't good - they wanted to see Kyrie, AD, and Flagg play together. That sounds like FO message to bidders that we won't take a garbage offer, but there's some truth there. I can see why they would want to say that publically, but what is it really saying?

If Kyrie comes back with a reasonable game, AD stay healthy, and Flagg continues to get better... this team will not be a lottery team. But what kind of team is it? To put this a different way, is there really a meaningful one or two-year future that includes Kyrie, AD, and Flagg? Is this team competing for a championship? If you don't believe that, then aren't we pretty much wasting time with AD? (and Kyrie for that matter).

I get the idea of waiting until there's a better offer, but as a fan, that's about as unexciting a thing I can think of. I'll spend the rest of this season watching Flagg develop and hoping the injury prone players over 30 years old don't fall apart on me before we trade them.

(12-12-2025, 12:33 PM)numnuts23 Wrote: Any thought of a window in the next 1-2 yrs with AD and Kyrie is immediately washed away with the juggernaut in OKC and the future one is SA.  
I think it would be pointless to try and make it happen right now.  

(12-12-2025, 12:29 PM)Dirknows Wrote: I get Kyrie is gonna want to play as soon as he can, but hopefully someone can try and convince him to take his time. Don’t think it will work as long as AD is around, even if he’s not I’m sure Kai just wants to play some ball. I’m fine if we end up with the 8-10th lottery spot, gives us a reasonable chance to move up, and will likely get a good player if we don’t. Just gonna be hard to navigate if we have AD, Kyrie and Flagg together.

(12-12-2025, 11:50 AM)F Gump Wrote: The TOR idea holds NO interest from me. Meh players on big contracts plus meh picks. No thanks.

My baseline is that you send a young player with emerging major upside, or the equivalent in a pick (the NO pick, for example) if you want the talent of AD added to your team to increase your chances of getting to the top. If you don't give that type of asset,  then Mavs should keep him.

Too many people are scared of AD. But if the pile of scraps and randos and junk is the trade value for him, I want to be the buyer (keep him) not the seller. It's way too low.

(12-12-2025, 12:39 PM)Smitty Wrote: I struggle to see the alternative. I think we could simply shift our mindset and ask, what makes this team good next season? If the trade you have baked in your head is meh for those guys, then what's the solution? There is zero incentive for the Mavs to not being as good as possible next year.

(12-12-2025, 12:46 PM)Scott41theMavs Wrote: Sorry to be obnoxious with this line of (rare) posting, but I just want them to get a real GM who will make the right decisions and negotiate well. Sounds like Lindsay to me.

(12-12-2025, 12:53 PM)Smitty Wrote: To elaborate more. Several teams try, and fail, to assemble a roster with 3 players of Davis, Irving, and Flagg's caliber. If you're the GM, why would you trade Davis for pennies on the dollar before you ever see it on the floor. Why would you make your team worse when there's no incentive to do so... Having no draft pick next year. It all needs to make sense. Fear of Davis getting severely injured isn't an acceptable reason for a terrible trade imo.

(12-12-2025, 01:01 PM)F Gump Wrote: Good point. Cart and horse stuff. To have the wisdom to navigate trades (and extract full value in a trade), you need an expert GM. (Not just a GM in general)

Lindsey interests me more than most suggestions. 

But I'm still holding out for Presti, of course.

(12-12-2025, 01:05 PM)Dirknows Wrote: Yeah not having a GM right now sucks, but no GM is better than our last GM.

(12-12-2025, 12:53 PM)Smitty Wrote: To elaborate more. Several teams try, and fail, to assemble a roster with 3 players of Davis, Irving, and Flagg's caliber. If you're the GM, why would you trade Davis for pennies on the dollar before you ever see it on the floor. Why would you make your team worse when there's no incentive to do so... Having no draft pick next year. It all needs to make sense. Fear of Davis getting severely injured isn't an acceptable reason for a terrible trade imo.

(12-12-2025, 01:03 PM)Chicagojk Wrote: It is a tricky situation though.  If I woke up after the draft and we had another real exiting young player to pair with Flagg this situation is completely different.  I would be fine keeping AD and Kyrie.   This team would be positioned as well as almost any team outside of OKC, SA and Houston moving forward.   

The issue is how do we get there.   If AD has ears he has certainly heard of his value.  I would expect inspired play from him.  If not, that is a glaring warning light.  Flagg is a lunatic and a winner.    The Mavs front court is good (even without Lively).   If they get average backcourt play this team will win more than they will lose imo.  

So how do we get to a place where we can secure another young building block and not wind up with the 15th pick in the draft.    It is easy to say just throw this season away, but much harder in reality when you are talking about alphas and guys with pride.   

I also don't want to even bring extension to the table either.

(12-12-2025, 01:17 PM)Winter Wrote: What you're saying is that AD is not in the Mavs future.

(12-12-2025, 01:27 PM)Smitty Wrote: The "future" in the NBA is more season to season than anything else. Maybe you can stretch it to a 2-year outlook. I'm saying AD is absolutely on the roster next year if the return is something like bad contracts from Toronto and a FRP or two in the 2030's. I have no desire to make my team worse next season.

I get that the extension talks are tied into this also, but the Mavs don't have to do anything about that this summer. I make Davis show that he can stay healthier and be the best player on a good team all year. The "trade value" and "extension price" will work itself out then.

(12-12-2025, 01:17 PM)Smitty Wrote: I understand the appeal of a top draft pick this summer. I'm all for it if that's the way it works out. It's why I want the NOP pick in any Davis trade with ATL.

The Mavs sit at 10 right now and have been more injured than last season, played some of their worst basketball, and still no Kyrie. I just have a hard time seeing how they get all the way down to 5-6, where those TOP guys are.

Your tricky situation description is pretty accurate.