Dallas Mavericks big man Christian Wood is now eligible for a contract extension, but whether he would ultimately stay a Luka Doncic teammate for years to come or not remains to be seen. Nevertheless, Wood gave Mavs fans an optimistic outlook for his chances to stay with the team beyond the 2022-23 NBA season, per Tim MacMahon of ESPN.

“I’m happy to be here,” Christian Wood told ESPN when asked about the possibility of an extension. “That’s what I’ll say. The vibe is good. … I’m open to it.” I asked if it needs to be for four years. “I can’t answer that,” Wood said with a laugh before walking away.

Wood landed with the Mavs last June when he was traded to Dallas by the Houston Rockets for Boban Marjanovic, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss, and Wendall Moore Jr. He is still playing n the three-year deal he signed with the Detroit Pistons back in 2022 worth $41 million, which puts him in position to become a free agent by the end of the current season.

Wood is having an up-and-down campaign in his first season with the Mavs, but on Christmas Day, he showed everyone how valuable he can be for Dallas when he put on a show in a 124-115 home win over  LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Against the Lakers, Wood scored 30 points to go with eight rebounds and seven assists in 38 minutes of action on the floor.

So far this season, Wood is averaging 17.3 points per game on 54.1 percent shooting from the field.