Mavericks Still Need To Fill Roster

After a quiet first week, the Dallas Mavericks have quickly worked to build their roster. They’ve seen Vince Carter bolt for Memphis, but brought in his old running mate – Richard Jefferson – in New Jersey. No longer will Jose Calderon, Wayne Ellington, Samuel Dalembert, and Shane Larkin wear the Dallas blue and white. Instead, Tyson Chandler and Raymond Felton will be penciled in as starters.

To no-one’s surprise, Dirk Nowitzki signed a three-year deal to finish his Hall-of-Fame career where it started. Devin Harris will also be back and can be penciled in as the Mavs sixth man. The team also traded for the bruising Greg Smith. Finally, the team inked Chandler Parsons to a three-year, max deal, whom is the team’s biggest signing in seasons.

Also, Monta Ellis, Jae Crowder, Ricky Ledo, Gal Mekel, and Brandan Wright are set to return. While the futures of key Mavs Shawn Marion and DeJuan Blair are in limbo, there is still a slim chance they can be back in Dallas this season.

Overall, it’s been quite a busy summer. Here’s a look at the Mavs projected lineup.

• PG: Felton, Harris, Mekel
• SG: Ellis, Ledo
• SF: Parsons, Crowder, Jefferson
• PF: Nowitzki
• C: Chandler, Wright, Smith

The roster currently consists of twelve players. With teams able to carry a maximum of fifteen on the roster, the Mavs can and will most likely add three more players to complete the roster.

The team still lacks true backups to Nowitzki and Ellis. Though, Crowder, Parsons, Harris, Felton, and Jefferson could see some time at shooting guard. As for Nowitzki’s backup: Last season the Mavs used Marion; the team could use Parsons in a similar role, or go with the bigger bodies of Wright and Smith.

Despite having Harris and Felton, the team could also look to add another guard into the mix; Mo Williams has constantly been linked to the Mavs throughout this offseason. Also, the healthy histories of Chandler, Wright, and Smith can justify the Mavs need for another big.

The pickings are becoming slim, and currently at the cap-limit, the Mavs don’t have much to offer outside of their cap room exception and minimum deals.

Here is a list of notable free agents remaining that could be within the Mavs price range.

• PG: Mo Williams, Jameer Nelson, Peyton Siva, Ramon Sessions, Jerryd Bayless, Aaron Brooks, Luke Ridnour
• SG: Rodney Stuckey, Jordan Crawford, Xavier Henry, Brandon Rush, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Jimmer Fredette
• SF: Wesley Johnson, Jordan Hamilton, Evan Turner, Francisco Garcia, Omri Casspi, Al Farouq-Aminu
• PF: Ekpe Udoh, Ed Davis, Andray Blatche, Charlie Villanueva, Elton Brand, Mike Scott (R), Ivan Johnson
• C: Greg Oden, Andrew Bynum, Emeka Okafor, Ryan Hollins