The Dallas Mavericks took a massive swing on Saturday night when they stunningly traded Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for a package centered around Anthony Davis. After weeks of wondering which fringe moves some of the contenders in the Western Conference would make, the Mavericks and the Lakers immediately shook up the landscape of the NBA in the blink of an eye.
Despite already making such a massive change, the Mavericks may not be done building their roster to make a run at a championship this season. They have recently talked to the Chicago Bulls about a potential big man swap that would send Daniel Gifford to Chicago and bring Nikola Vucevic back to Dallas, according to Hardwood Paroxysm. Those talks happened before the Doncic bombshell dropped, but could still be on the table with just a few days to go until the deadline.
Vucevic would be a strong fit next to Anthony Davis in the Dallas front court, even though he hasn’t played with very many shooting bigs so far in his career. With Vucevic and Davis on the front line, the Mavericks would have great spacing and the former Lakers star would be able to cover up a lot of Vucevic’s deficiencies on the defensive end of the court. If Dallas is really going all-in on this season, this could be another move that makes them better before the stretch run.
Mavericks must shift to build around Kyrie Irving now
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In a stunning turn of events, the Mavericks are now building their team around Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis instead of Luka Doncic. Of course, this is a major change and should affect how they go about building their roster moving forward.
Having a true post presence who can be dominant like Davis will be a lot different for the Mavericks than a ball-dominant guard like Doncic. A front line of Davis and Daniel Gafford is massive and would make this team very tough to play against defensively, even though Nico Harrison and company could still use Gafford as a trade chip before the deadline.
Now, the Mavericks will have to move forward with Kyrie Irving as the primary ball handler, a role that he has not been forced to play (other than when Doncic has been out with injury) since his brief stint in Boston with the Celtics. Irving obviously has the talent to be that guy, and he still has the ability to score the ball with the best of them in the NBA. However, whether he can be the true point guard and focal point of a championship offense is somewhat of a question mark, so he will be a fascinating player to watch over the next few months.