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Luka Doncic led the Dallas Mavericks to their first NBA Finals appearance since Dirk Nowitzki dragged the team to the 2011 championship. Dallas beat three of the top four seeds in the Western Conference before falling to the Boston Celtics. Against the titlists, the Mavs’ lack of scoring options was exposed by Boston's defense.
Doncic put up his usual numbers, but Kyrie Irving could not get himself going against his former team. “Uncle Drew” averaged 19.8 PPG on 41.4% shooting, including 27.6% from deep. With Irving having a rough time scoring, Jason Kidd’s offense was whipped by the Celtics.
The Dallas Mavericks will be championship contenders as long as Luka Doncic is healthy. But, they have to retool the supporting cast to get over the hump. The Western Conference champs, per Ian Begley, may be looking at a veteran wing to add to the roster:
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“Teams have tons of conversations about potential trades at this point in the league calendar. Several teams, including the Mavs, have checked in on Jerami Grant’s situation in Portland. Grant, 30, is entering the second season of a five-year, $190 million contract with the Trail Blazers.”
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Jerami Grant is in an interesting situation with the Portland Trail Blazers. The team has embraced a full rebuild, but it also needs the kind of veteran presence and leadership that Grant brings. Portland, though, isn’t going anywhere and might be willing to offload the forward’s contract.
Grant, who is owed $29.7 million next season, is 30 years old. He also has a $36.4 million player option heading into the 2027-28 season when he will be 33. The Blazers might no longer want those figures in the books while not contending for a championship.
Jerami Grant has averaged 20.7 PPG, 4.1 RPG and 2.6 APG in two seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers. Grant's defense and 40.2% shooting from deep during that stretch will be two of the biggest reasons the Dallas Mavericks could be interested in him.
The Mavericks have limited draft capital to trade for Jerami Grant
The Mavericks only have two first-round picks (2025 and 2026) until 2030. If they want to acquire Jerami Grant, they may have to give up at least one of these precious picks. They also have a handful of second-round picks to sweeten the deal. Dallas will be going all in for a championship if they decide to trade for Grant.
Dallas will likely have to part with Tim Hardaway Jr. who will be playing his final year with the team next season. Josh Green is also expected to move to Portland as he can grow with the Blazers’ emerging stars and he is on a team-friendly contract.
Hardaway, Green and whatever picks the Dallas Mavericks can offer might be enough to pull away Jerami Grant from Portland.
