Have Mavs Become Stealth Suitor for Next NBA Star on Trade Market?

The Dallas Mavericks have come a long way in an extremely short amount of time. A little more than a year ago, they missed the playoffs entirely, leading to speculation about whether or not the star duo of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving would work out.

After making several key roster moves during the 2023 offseason and the 2024 trade deadline, Dallas flipped the script and made it to the NBA Finals last season before falling to the Boston Celtics. And then, following that defeat, GM Nico Harrison went out and made even more needle-moving additions. Most notably, Dallas signed future Hall-of-Famer Klay Thompson to a team-friendly, three-year, $50 million deal.

The Mavs shouldn't need a big, splashy trade for at least a year or two, given that they're now considered one of the league's top contenders. However, if an opportunity to trade for a disgruntled superstar arises, Dallas has, at the very least, stealthily become a realistic destination given the assets it now possesses.

One interesting situation we can't help but think about is Giannis Antetokounmpo's future with the Milwaukee Bucks. Ever since winning a title in 2021, the Bucks have been first-round exits ever since. If they underperform for a fourth consecutive year, one has to wonder if Antetokounmpo will start to consider a change of scenery.

"I'm a Milwaukee Buck, but most importantly, I'm a winner," Antetokounmpo said on a podcast last summer . "If there is a better situation for me to win the Larry O'Brien, I have to take that better situation."

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Not only do the Mavs have a couple of first-round picks and pick swaps to offer in future trade negotiations, but they also have several key players on great contracts, including Thompson, P.J. Washington, Daniel Gafford, and Dereck Lively II. That's not to say the Mavs would part with those players anytime soon, but it's at least worth noting that they'd hold value around the league in trade talks.

In the meantime, though, the Mavs are focused on making it back to the NBA Finals for a second consecutive season after Doncic got a taste of what the biggest stage in basketball is like. Dallas could be so good this coming season that trades in the immediate future might not be needed.