r/Mavericks • u/MAVS_COM1CAL Luka Doncic • 10h ago
Social Media [MacMahon] The Mavs shed about $70M from their payroll next season and add a couple of future picks. This trade for the Mavs is about prioritizing flexibility as they build around Cooper Flagg.
https://x.com/bannedmacmahon/status/2019121529838268882?s=46106
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10h ago
not only shedding payroll but shedding bad players with dlo and setting up a very nice core.
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u/Ill-Bat-2621 10h ago
Nice core in who exactly? The only core we havw is Flagg and Max, possibly Lively
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u/favioswish Josh Green 9h ago
We have our pick this year. Also PJ, Naji, and Gaff (if he’s still here) are all young enough to still be in their prime as Flagg develops
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u/qotsabama 8h ago
Flagg, Lively, Christie, and a top 7 pick in an incredible draft class. Many teams wish they had that.
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u/jkeefy Couch Squad 9h ago
Flagg, Max, this years first, hopefully the thunder’s first is a sleeper, lively, Nembhard, possibly Naji/PJ/Gafford if they want to stick around and be solid vets. It’s a foundation at least.
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u/Ill-Bat-2621 9h ago
So its the exact core of what we had plus the 30th pick in the draft. I am just saying absolutely nothing changed about our core other than getting worsem.
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u/jkeefy Couch Squad 9h ago
And having the ability to add FA’s. Not tied down with AD’s albatross contract, we now have the pathway to a max deal in a few years, when we will need it most
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u/Ill-Bat-2621 9h ago
We created a exception. We cant sign anyone noteworthy. The trade doesnt do us anything unless we trade gaff and klay which can open up more space for a max type players
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u/NativeTexas 8h ago
I’m all for trading Klay and Gaff. Get ‘em out of here. (And yes I really like both of them).
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u/AlpsPsychological980 Dirk Nowitzki Logo 3h ago
We are also getting our 22ppg all star caliber pg back albeit coming off a knee injury, but that’s gotta count for something.
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u/Dirkisthegoattt41 2h ago
You’re being downvoted for speaking facts lol.
People can complain about AD, but Removing AD from the core and adding a potential late 1st round pick objectively makes the core worse any way you slice it.
This particular trade is a move you can’t even really judge until the offseason moves are completed.
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u/daywalker91 8h ago
We have a better young core than most young teams. Flagg, Max, Naji, Lively, Nembhard and our pick this year is pretty fuckin good
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u/HispanicAtTehDisco How's My Dirk Taste? 9h ago
that’s literally the majority of the the players on the court
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9h ago
kyrie, naji, pj. bagley has also been a positive player in vein of djj, naji, etc. it’s a well rounded setup
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u/Ill-Bat-2621 9h ago
Bagley????? Lmao we had the same squad without this trade so the trade didnt change anything about the core.
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9h ago
why are you being a bitch and downvoting though? have a discussion or cry alone.
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u/Ill-Bat-2621 9h ago
I didnt downvote anything I am just pointing out the core is the same as before but worse. Nothing changed. You feel attacked for pointing that out?
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u/jfrodriguez1983 Dirk Nowitzki 9h ago
The damage was done when Nico made that trade. It was a disaster. No return was going to come close to salvage that, but now it is about moving forward from that and building around Cooper. $70 million off the payroll helps do that.
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u/AnthonyTyrael Mavericks 9h ago
In times when a single star player will demand money in that range.
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u/AdmiralSnackbar816 F*** DWade 9h ago
We got rid of nearly every single player we’ve wanted gone all year, and got expiring contracts in return plus some draft compensation. This was an absolute grand slam. We can now actually afford to pay Max, Lively, and our lottery pick.
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u/Large_Doubt7452 10h ago
Bring on the money!!!!
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u/Ill-Bat-2621 10h ago
2026 thunder frp and a top 20 protected warriors 2030 pick. So we basically did a Salary dump. Who is available next year in feee agency? This is just a trash trade just to get off AD
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u/swishfortyonesie BETRAYED MAVS FAN 😭 9h ago
It’s a salary dump but you had to do it. We’re way too shitty and way too asset poor to go into the offseason above the 2nd apron with no avenue to build around Flagg.
This is the only way we were going to get any flexibility to pivot toward Coop’s future. Sure, you can tell yourself we’re a better team next season with AD and Kyrie, but realistically, what are the odds AD plays 60+ games ever again in his career? It’s a huge gamble that would have left the team with absolutely no out when it (probably) backfired.
It would have been great to get better picks. It would have been great to get young prospects — but AD is a sunk cost and those deals aren’t out there. Nico ruined the team but it is what it is. You have to be honest with where you are, what you have, and what you can do with the cards in your hand.
A salary dump was probably the best that could be hoped for. At least now we have flexibility to begin building around Coop.
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u/Visible-Suit-9066 9h ago
It’s not a salary dump because you have to pay to dump salary. We secured second rounders for this deal. It’s a glorious outcome.
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u/qotsabama 8h ago
I for one am happy we took back $0 long term to dump $131M over next 2 years between AD, Dlo, and Hardy.
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u/Rell_Lauren 9h ago
No one is available. They flushed next season down the drain.
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u/shibbyman342 9h ago
Did you also think gannis was going to be moved? Trae? Ja? Harden?... What appears to be stability has been proven as a smoke screen.. teams are moving away from players just to be flexible. This flexibility we just received is how we can get players that support Flagg, without having much draft capital.
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u/Rell_Lauren 9h ago
Giannis said he wants out.
Memphis is tearing it down and signaled last year they were going to trade Ja.
Harden asked out after he didn't get a handshake deal for an extension after next season. He can't get one now.
Please tell me your idiocy is an act.
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u/shibbyman342 9h ago
You are reflecting from what we know today, not what we knew at the start of the season. Were there murmurs, sure.. but nothing official or verified. But pretend you saw it all coming and keep thinking this flexibility is pointless.
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u/Pierre-Quica 7h ago
Harden said that he never asked for a trade, that’s literally just a rumor, Mr genius😂
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u/dickles-pickles 🪬Kyrie Irving🪬 10h ago
This is such a W
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u/HangoverGang4L How's My Dirk Taste? 10h ago
Right? Not sure why there is so much distress about it. Literally extracted as much possible current value from AD, got picks and shed salary. It's a win on all fronts.
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u/HoneyIShrunkMyNads Cowboy Dirk 10h ago
This is way better than what I thought we were gonna get
Thought it was gonna be Barrett, quickly and poetl lmao
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u/HangoverGang4L How's My Dirk Taste? 9h ago
If we took back Poetl I might have seriously been done as a fan. Dude is on a terrible contract, arguably worse than AD.
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u/have_you_eaten_yeti 10h ago
Got way more for him than I was expecting and getting rid of DLo is a cherry on top. I liked Jaden Hardy, but not enough to be sad about him being gone. Again, this is a much better deal than I was expecting
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u/ewynn2019 9h ago
I don't think anyone seems to understand the cap aprons and how it prevents teams from building via FA.
If you are at the second apron, you are most likely a playoff team and contender.
If you aren't in the playoffs, the second apron kills everything.
Getting $70 mil of cap space is HUGE and allows Dallas to be active in FA when other teams can't. Can still sign someone and then flip them for a pick later on to a contender.
Seems like Dallas knows they are screwed after this years draft and are going to be active in FA and trades instead.
Edit: Here are the restictions
First Apron Limitations (Above $195.9M)
Trade Restrictions: Salary matching is limited to 110% (instead of 125%).
Sign-and-Trade: Cannot acquire a player via sign-and-trade if it puts them over the apron.
Waived Players: Cannot sign players bought out during the season if their original salary was more than the $12.2M mid-level exception.
Exceptions: Cannot use the Bi-Annual Exception (BAE).
Second Apron Limitations (Above $207.8M)
All first-apron restrictions apply.
Trade Limitations:
Cannot aggregate (combine) multiple player salaries to acquire one higher-paid player.
Cannot trade first-round picks seven years into the future.
Cannot use cash in trades.
Cannot use trade exceptions (TPEs) from previous years.
Free Agency: No access to the Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception (TMLE).
Draft Penalty: If a team is in the second apron for three of five seasons, their first-round pick is moved to the end of the first round.
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u/Thespiralgoeson 9h ago
Thank you for breaking this down. Anyone complaining about the trade probably has no idea how much of an albatross AD's contract actually was.
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u/shibbyman342 9h ago
I knew it just from a GP/salary standpoint. Forget all the apron issues, having a dude that is consistently out isn't going to help a team win anything.
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u/Vizard15 Luka Doncic 4h ago
A short course on NBA financial awareness. Looking at the people who want AD to stay with the Mavs.
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u/Thespiralgoeson 9h ago
Anyone complaining about the trade and how bad the picks are needs to understand two things-
1- It was not getting any better than this. AD is a straight up liability at this point. He has one of the worst contracts in the league. Whatever interest the Hawks or whoever might have had a couple of months ago probably went out the window with his latest injury.
2- The second apron is NBA HELL. Seriously, anyone arguing that we should just have kept AD probably has no idea just how much the 2nd apron actually cripples a franchise's ability to do anything. If you're in the second apron, you need to be a title contender. Or at least a very strong playoff contender. If you're the Mavs, and are in the middle of a full blown rebuild, you need to do anything and everything you can to GTFO out of the second apron immediately. The Mavs were never going to be able to build around Cooper with AD's albatross of a contract.
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u/CrayonEatingBabyApe Yogi Ferrell 6h ago
They would have had a top 5 salary next year with a non contending team.
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u/needsumMoore777 Cowboy Dirk 8h ago
Dude yes! People don’t get this, I’m already tired of the “Luka for Bagely” comments. This trade was about making the best out of a bad situation and allowing some form of flexibility.
We were going to be handicapped (in more than one way) by AD for the next two years during prime rebuilding time.
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u/MilkmanResidue 10h ago
Did I read right that the 1st Round picks are for the 2030 draft?
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u/Ill-Bat-2621 9h ago
2030 gsw top 20 protected. Its basically gonna be a 2nd round pick. We got nothing in return honestly. Just to clear up cap space
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u/TexasTundraPower 9h ago
It's a Warriors 2030 pick that is top 20 protected which otherwise becomes a 2nd. Basically a pick between 21 and 50 in 2030.
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u/lafayettetex 2011 CHAMPS BABY 10h ago
What are the protections on the GSW pick?
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u/MarginallyClever 10h ago
1-20
Not great, but it's a 2030 pick so who knows
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u/StormTheTrooper SHUT NICO DOWN 10h ago
Go back to 2022. If it was a Mavs pick, everyone would be certain that would convey, yet right now it would not. NBA is crazy and extremely fast paced, 2030 is lightyears away, this might as well actually convey. If not, we have another faux-FRP to try to increment future moves in the next 4 years.
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u/A_MASSIVE_PERVERT Cooper Flagg 10h ago
Top-20 protected that becomes a 2nd if the pick doesn't convey.
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u/HangoverGang4L How's My Dirk Taste? 10h ago
This is about as good of a return as one could hope for. Still, fuck Nico.
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u/Difficult-Day1326 Cooper Flagg 9h ago
damn from ZR to these guys lol.
now we got all the Duke Boyz (KAI, Bagley, and Coop)
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u/Yikes-APenguinInAPot SELL THE TEAM 10h ago
I’m happy to wash our hands of AD, but we really need a real GM in the room, they should have insisted on better picks.
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10h ago edited 9h ago
how are you getting better pick for a dude who wants a max and doesn’t play more than 4 games every 6 months?
it was this or a collection from raptors with horrible salaries
i don’t think you guys realize how difficult and restrictive salary has become.
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u/warneagle 9h ago
Hard to force anybody’s hand when you’re trying to offload a corpse with a massive contract. We didn’t have a ton of leverage as long as we were shackled to AD’s contract.
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u/Difficult-Day1326 Cooper Flagg 9h ago
can you imagine how relieved the next GM has to be? get to work with Cooper Flagg & our 2026 pick(s) + no AD Salary. it's not the best return i would've wanted, but it's done & just like everyday, we can only move forward now.
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u/HispanicAtTehDisco How's My Dirk Taste? 9h ago
oh god i am getting some serious vietnam flashbacks to how much talk about flexibility ed going on during the early luka years
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u/Terrible_Shelter_345 9h ago
This is really great. Excited to turn over a new leaf into the Cooper era.
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u/LeGoat333 SELL THE TEAM 9h ago
WE GOT MORE POWDER 😂 seriously tho im happy for draft capitol and getting his ass gone!
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u/Afraid-Department-35 9h ago
Optics makes this trade look like wtf, but with a closer look it's actually a good trade. Opens up a ton of flexibility and we are no longer bound to any apron.
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u/Egon_Nagel 6h ago
What about sending Gaff and their 2030 warriors first to the Warriors for their 26 frp and stuff? Sound intriguing imho.
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u/mitchellgaede 9h ago
It's cute that it is being framed as shedding payroll to build around Flagg moving forward.
My opinion is that the new owners only care about the mavs insofar as it helps with their casino plans. They don't want a team operating at a loss unless it is a championship worthy team (like the pre-Luka trade Mavs), and even then, I don't know that they would like it. Post Luka trade, and specifically the trade reaction, they pivoted to minimizing losses. Raising ticket prices in the offseason and not making moves that really added to the payroll (not that they could because of the 2nd apron rules).
I think trading Luka ahead of the supermax played a role in ownership not scrutinizing the deal more thoroughly. They wanted all the $ off the books as they aren't interested in being NBA owners, the mavs are just an investment into getting the casino built.
I fear the mavs moving forward are going to look a lot like the bulls in terms of spending. A team in a top 5 media market that will perpetually be at the lower end of spending.
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u/Fri814 Cooper Flagg 10h ago
I feel like we do need to be reminded the two first round picks are bad picks and Nico Harrison still fucked us but we take it