Today, we will continue our look at each Mavericks player and their value on the trade market with other teams. Be sure to check back every day as we count down towards the trade deadline.
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Shawn Marion
What can the Mavs yield with arguably their biggest trade asset this deadline season?
Salary:
$9,316,796
Age:
35 years, 9 months
Season Stats:
10.6 PPG – 6.8 RPG – 1.7 APG
Potential:
The former All-Star is in a steady decline, but can still start at the 3 or 4 spot for most of the NBA (given his terrific rebounding skills). Could be a great leader for a 2nd unit for a contending team.
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Trade Value:
Marion is now the only player not named Dirk Nowitzki that is left remaining on the Mavs roster after winning the NBA championship 3 seasons ago. The 15-year veteran remains the Mavs’ starting small forward and a nice backup option to Dirk Nowitzki at the power forward position when Brandan Wright or DeJuan Blair aren’t available. Marion, a four-time All-Star during his time with the Phoenix Suns, has transitioned into a gritty role player during his more recent Dallas days. Despite his age (soon to be 36), Marion is still the Mavs’ best and most versatile defensive player and has led them in rebounding the last three seasons (including this one), averaging 6.8 boards per game. Marion doesn’t have many plays designed for him, but he’s an effective cutter who scores often on unconventional floaters and an outstanding offensive put back player who can also run the floor at an effective pace. He is averaging 10.6 points per game, while shooting 46.5 percent from the floor. Marion has also added the corner three pointer to his arsenal, shooting the 36.7 % from 3 and an excellent 45% from the corners per Basketball-Reference.com. Marion didn’t exercise his right to opt out of the final year of his contract before this season. That certainly wasn’t surprising (Marion is probably about 3-4 million dollars over paid at this point in his career). The Small Forward however has been saying for well over a year now that he doesn’t even know if he’ll continue playing beyond this current contract.
From Ed Sefko of the Dallas Morning News in an article in October he wrote the following….”That’s what happened with Shawn Marion when he ran into former coach Frank Johnson after the Mavericks’ first preseason practice. Johnson was at Phoenix when Marion was an all-star with the Suns. The two exchanged pleasantries, and Johnson asked Marion how many years this was for him in the NBA. “Fifteen,” Marion said. Overhearing that, it was mentioned there was no guarantee there would be a 16th year next season, given that Marion’s due to be a free agent after this season. “There will be a 16th,” Johnson said. “He’ll probably play 20 seasons before he’s done. “Marion just laughed. “No way,” he said. “I want to be able to walk when I’m done.” “
Marion’s name has been floating around the rumor mills for most of the season, being linked to the Cleveland Cavaliers (who eventually settled on Luol Deng) and even the New York Knicks. One could certainly see why Marion is viewed as a great bargain; a team would only use him for about 4 months (that time in which they get an elite defender and a good veteran scoring punch) before letting him become a free agent. One could think that if the Mavs were to find a team desperate enough for Marion’s services, they could easily get a first round pick out of the deal, possibly even with a young prospect thrown in as well (probably to make any such trade work financially).
The bottom line is versatile defenders like Marion aren’t just floating around the league and the Mavs have a real asset in their hands here. Marion is however still an integral part of this successful Mavs squad and if the Mavs feel that this team will make the playoffs, they could hang on the Marion for their own benefit. In this scenario, look for the Mavs to likely look to try to re-sign Marion for far less money as they will have a decent amount of cap space this year and won’t want to commit to much to the Matrix. More than likely, the Mavs would see a prized veteran walk away for nothing for the sake of a playoff appearance. Time will tell which direction the Mavs decide to go with this big asset, their decision could ultimately shape future transactions down the line.
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Days until trade deadline: 2 days
Stay tuned!
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