Why Wait? Mavs Must Move Bogut and Williams Now

 

There isn’t a single Mavericks fan who isn’t having a blast watching the Mavs these days.   26 year old Seth Curry is lighting up as a starter.  24 year old Harrison Barnes continues to impress and carry the offensive scoring load. 23 year old rookie Yogi Ferrell is providing a national buzz that the Mavs haven’t seen in several years. Their improved play since their dreadful start to the season has been fueled by youth. Another thing Mavs fans haven’t seen in years.  

 

With this new youthful style play putting them back in the chase for the 8th seed in the top heavy Western Conference, is there any reason for the Mavericks to hang on to any veteran players who don’t figure to be the long term solution at their respective positions?  It might come up to a case by case basis…

 

Dirk Nowitzki?  Stop messing around.

 

Deron Williams and Andrew Bogut?  Not so quick to defend those guys…

 

Both Williams and Bogut were projected to be pivotal pieces for Dallas if they were going to make it to the playoff for the 16th time in 17 seasons.  They were slated as the starting point guard and center for the team before training camp even started last fall.  It was really evident from game one in Indiana back in October that the lineup of Williams, Wesley Matthews, Barnes, Nowitzki and Bogut was going to be far from the best Mavs lineup.  Bogut had a -19 plus/minus rating and it was clear that he and Nowitzki were not a good fit on either side of the court since both have as much speed to offer as someone who has been asleep for the last thirty minutes.  Occasional health problems for Deron Williams have given the likes of Curry and the surprise of Yogi Ferrell have allowed the Mavs front office and fans alike to ponder the need of Williams.

 

An interesting pair, Andrew Bogut and Deron Williams were the 1st and 3rd overall picks back in the 2005 NBA Draft.  Both players are on their third different team in their career.  Both also have contracts that expire at the end of the season.  Neither player is going to be the long-term starter for Dallas at their respective position, so why keep them around any longer?

 

It won’t be easy for the Mavs front office and fans to put themselves in the mindset of being sellers at this year’s trade deadline, but it could be an incredibly important decision that alters the future of this franchise.  Dallas isn’t going to win the title this season no matter what moves they do/don’t make.  They can, however, stock up their trade assets or acquire more undervalued talent like they have with the likes of Barnes, Ferrell and Curry.  

 

With every day that passes, Andrew Bogut loses trade value.  There was probably a point earlier this season where the Mavericks could have got a first round draft pick.  Not a good one… MAYBE they could have received the 29th or 30th pick in the draft, but that’s still an asset to get a steal of a player in the draft or use as a trade asset.  These days, they’d be lucky to get a second round pick in 2020 for Bogut.  He has played in only 25 games this season and has been a waste of space on offense.  A contending team could certainly use his rebounding services, however.  The Celtics, for instance, are second in the Eastern Conference standings but a bottom three rebounding team in the league.  There have been multiple reports recently about the Cavaliers being interested in Bogut, but perhaps only as a buyout candidate later in the season.

 

For the Mavs, there simply is no reason to not get whatever you possibly can for Bogut.  There is a demand for him and the potential long term value of whatever small asset you might receive for him is better than buying him out in a month or just letting him walk via free agency this summer.  Whether it be a draft pick, trade exception, or the rights to some guy overseas who will never step foot on an NBA court, it’s just important to get the asset.

 

The same applies for Deron Williams.  The only difference is that Williams has shown that he still has a ton to offer not only the Mavericks, but essentially any team who isn’t completely happy with their guard play.  He’s averaging essentially 14 points and 7 assists, so there’s a definitely a team out there who might think they’re a playmaker or two away…. anyone know a certain superstar who has asked for that lately? 

 

With Williams, one would have to think the Mavericks would be able to fetch at least a first round draft pick.  Now would that be in this year’s loaded draft?  Probably not, but it’s worth having some extra assets for any year.  Williams might even be able to fetch a valuable younger player from a contending team looking for one more veteran to push their roster to championship contention in the short term.

 

The urgency to make the move is there with Williams, as well.  Another player who probably should have been dealt before the new year, D-Will’s recent injury might be a slight knack on his trade value.  He’s always had some injury problems, similar to Bogut, so it might be hard for a team to wrap their mind around giving up too much for a guy who they can’t feel certain will be on the court.

 

The trade deadline is two weeks from Thursday and no matter what good or bad things the Mavericks do on the court between now and then, they need to be incredibly active on the trade front making sure that their veteran pieces are able to be shipped for younger players or assets that can be utilized for years to come.

 

It won’t be easy for fans or teammates who might still be thinking about making a run towards the playoffs, but it’s simply the direction the organization needs to take.