The Dallas Mavericks are in a middle of a rebuild, but they have a lot of young talent and are only a few pieces away before they can compete again in the Western Conference.
According to Michael Scotto of The Athletic, the Mavericks believe one of those guys will be coming by way of free agency this summer:
“At No. 5 overall, Dallas believes it has a strong chance to land DeMarcus Cousins in free agency, league sources told The Athletic. If the Mavericks pass on Mohamed Bamba, that would signal the team will go all in on trying to sign Cousins or restricted free agent Clint Capela. DeAndre Jordan could also become an unrestricted free agent if he declines his $24.1 million player option, but Dallas has been through that courtship before.”
A lot of mock drafts have Mo Bamba going to the Mavs, but playing DeMarcus Cousins and Bamba next to each other would be tough so if the Mavericks were to pass on Bamba and take someone else that would be a big tell in which direction they think their free agency will go.
Capela is a restricted free agent but the Rockets have talked about how they would like to keep him, and they might match any offer that comes his way.
DeAndre Jordan is another option, but the Mavs have already gone through that deal once, where they thought they had him before he decided to dart back to the Los Angeles Clippers at the last moment.
Free Agency doesn’t start until July 1st, but the draft tonight will show exactly what direction they will go in.
