Trade & Free Agency 2026/2027

[Smitty]

@APHOOPS
I’m like 90% sure Mathurin is just name-searching and liking any tweet that can be perceived as negative for #motivation, but if you assume that Dallas actually is his “preferred destination” then the deal won’t be for the player(s) I see a lot of you tweeting about.

A sign-and-trade would trigger a first apron hard cap for Dallas and they’re $9.54M below that apron right now. So if Mathurin’s new contract starts at $17.5M then Dallas would have to send out at least $9M. So, while it technically *could* be PJ Washington or Daniel Gafford, their salaries are too large and create subsequent salary-shedding/roster spot issues for LA. LA would [ideally] have to invite a third team (Brooklyn?) into the deal and incentivize them with draft capital to absorb someone like Isaiah Jackson into their cap space or another team’s TPE. And that’s not even considering the draft capital you’d likely have to send to Dallas for someone like Washington (Gafford you could probably get straight up for Mathurin).

The simplest way for a trade to be executed for both sides under those parameters (Mathurin, 3YR/$54M [1+2])? Bennedict Mathurin for Naji Marshall. That’d help Dallas stay under the first apron hard cap with 15 rostered players. Marshall’s role was likely going to be decreased headed into next season now with Dallas’ acquisitions of Santi Aldama, Morez Johnson, and Zaccharie Risacher. That’s on top of already having Cooper Flagg and PJ Washington.

A scoring guard for a team that needs a scoring guard. A wing capable of guarding forwards for a team that needs some size. Which team, if any, gets picks? I’ll let yall argue about that.