The Dallas Mavericks are going all-in for the 2023-24 season. After re-signing Kyrie Irving to a long-term extension, the team is looking to make a deep postseason run. They've already made a couple of moves in the offseason to address some of their problems from last season.
Still, there's more work that needs to be done in order for the Mavs to be a complete team. The NBA offseason is not over yet, and there are still some moves that the Mavs can make to bolster arguably their weakest position last season. Let's explore this trade and see what alternatives they have for this move.
Trading for Clint Capela (or another big man)
Early in the offseason, there was talk about the Mavs' interest in Atlanta Hawks big man Clint Capela. Talks about a potential deal for Capela happened during the NBA Draft, but it ultimately fizzled out. That being said … Dallas is still interested in trading for the ex-Rockets big man.
Recent reports about the Mavs say that they could potentially join as a third team for a hypothetical trade between the Toronto Raptors and the Hawks. As part of the propsed deal, Toronto would send Pascal Siakam to Atlanta for an assortment of players. However, Toronto has no interest in keeping Clint Capela. That's where the Mavs step in.
Of course, there's also the possibility of Capela heading straight to Dallas without needing a northern detour. If the Mavs choose to trade for Capela straight up, they could hypothetically trade a player like Christian Wood in exchange.
Capela is inarguably the best available center who fits everything that the Mavs need in a player at that position. Rebounding and rim protection have been Dallas' biggest weakness for the last few years. Without a great option at the 5-spot, Dallas has had a lot of trouble keeping opposing teams off the glass. It doomed them during their WCF loss to the Warriors a couple of years ago, and it remained a problem throughout their troublesome 2022-23 season.
In addition, their offense can be a bit one-dimensional with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving at the helm. Both are talented isolation scorers, but their other way of creation is through the pick-and-roll. Over the last few years, though, Dallas has lost the big men who are most effective with Luka. Dwight Powell's decline and the Kristaps Porzingis trade gutted their ability to generate offense from the pick-and-roll.
This is where Capela comes in. The former Rockets center first made a name for himself as the primary target of James Harden in the pick-and-roll. While age has sapped Capela of some of his hops, he's still an effective lob threat who can put pressure on opposing offenses. Doncic is arguably the best pick-and-roll creator in the league, and having a legitimate roll threat would open up things for the Mavs' shooters and other players on offense. And while Irving is more of an isolation scorer, he's also a good secondary option to run the pick-and-roll.
That's not even mentioning Capela's capabilities on defense. The big man is averaging 11 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game, which are perfectly respectable numbers. Just having a more capable player in the paint would vastly improve their defense. Capela's rebounding would also help the Mavs keep opponents off the offensive glass, the thing that killed them the most in their deepest playoff run.
If Capela doesn't end up going to the Mavs, they could potentially pivot to a different player to trade for. Despite talks failing earlier in the offseason, DeAndre Ayton could still be at play for Dallas. They could also try and swing for the fences if Joel Embiid decides that he's tired of playing in Philly. They could also perhaps get creative and trade for Bojan Bogdanovic AND James Wiseman to fix their biggest need and add a valuable role player in Bogdanovic.
In any case, expect the Mavs to continue to look for a move before the season starts rolling around.