DeAndre Jordan to the Mavericks Looking More Possible

A rumor surfaced a few weeks ago that surely caught the attention of Mavericks fans. “Report: DeAndre Jordan ‘has made it clear through back channels’ he’d be interested in joining Mavericks”, the headline read.

More along the same lines followed, but honestly, I didn’t pay much attention to them for a few reasons.

Jordan and the Clippers were still alive in the playoffs, defeating the defending champion Spurs in 7 games and taking the commanding 3-1 lead against Houston in the conference semi-finals that they eventually surrendered.

Why would his camp start working the back channels in April, when Jordan and the Clippers were still contending for a title with a solid, relatively young core? Leverage for upcoming negotiations makes some sense, but it was still pretty early for that. April rumors rarely end up holding much water and I just wasn’t buying this one.

Plus, Dallas hasn’t had great luck with big name free agents in recent history. Maybe I wanted to save myself from becoming too invested in the idea of the Mavericks nabbing a soon to be 27-year old center who just led the league in rebounds for the second straight year, field goal percentage for the third straight year, and defensive win shares with 5.4.

But a rumor that seemed like a pipe dream to me only days ago appears to be picking up some traction, despite Clippers coach and President of Basketball Operations Doc Rivers calling resigning Jordan their “top priority”.

So why the change of heart? Well, there are a few reasons.

First would be the state of the Clippers. With Chris Paul and Blake Griffin they have top-3 players at the point guard and power forward positions. That’s a great tandem, but their combined salaries next season surpass the $40 million mark and after those two the roster has some major problems.

The bench is atrocious, and their ultimate downfall, and even if the Clips don’t pick up their team option on Jamal Crawford they have JJ Redick on the books for over $7 million a year for the next two seasons and Spencer Hawes at a minimum of $5.5 million for at least two seasons. He holds a player option for a $6 million paycheck in 2017-18.

More from The Smoking Cuban

It sounds like Doc wants to bring his free agent son Austin back, too. As mentioned earlier Rivers has called resigning Jordan his top priority, but when push comes to shove do they value him at a max-contract level with so much necessary roster reconfiguration and a lot of money on the books already?

Rivers might, and ultimately he has the final word on any moves. But he’ll surely consult his two biggest stars when it comes to offering Jordan a max-deal. And if recent chatter has any veracity that might not work in Jordan’s favor.

According to FOX Sports’ Bill Reiter, a rift has developed between Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan.

Sources: DeAndre Jordan and Chris Paul have had falling out throughout season, a fact that could push Jordan to another team in free agency.
— Bill Reiter (@sportsreiter) May 18, 2015

Paul is known as a fierce competitor, and that type of personality can wear on guys. The other Staples Center inhabitants saw it happen with Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard a few years ago.

The supposed beef between Paul and Jordan allegedly stems from Jordan’s dedication to improving his free throw shooting, or lack thereof.

More from The Smoking Cuban

Home/Mavs News