What if DeAndre Jordan Was a Dallas Maverick?

Over seven months has past since the whole DeAndre Jordan drama surrounding free agency and the Dallas Mavericks are doing just fine, but what if he never backed out of his deal?

Last summer was one of, if not the most, emotional summer for the Dallas Mavericks heading into free agency as the whole league knew they were swinging for the fences. Rumors swirled and we all know the details that unfolded over the course of the summer.

The young, star center in Los Angeles agreed in principle to a max contract with the Dallas Mavericks only to back out of the deal before it went official and go back to the Los Angeles Clippers.

It sent shock waves around the league as social media battles took place and analysts from every sports network was talking about the soap opera Jordan was putting on. But even though a lot of hate was being thrown at Jordan, it was the Dallas Mavericks who was in the worst spot of anyone.

Dallas had commitments not only from DeAndre Jordan, but also Wesley Matthews as most viewed it as a package deal. In addition to them, rumors had also circulated about other veterans who were focused on signing with Dallas after the Jordan and Matthews deals went official.

Obviously Jordan backed out and Matthews decided to stay committed to the Mavericks on a little bigger of a contract. With the free agent market already dried up, Dallas looked to Milwaukee to bring in veteran Zaza Pachulia for a second round pick. A move that was looked at in desperation, but has turned out way better than people have imagined.

So what if DeAndre didn’t fall into the peer pressure from his Clippers teammates and was a Dallas Maverick right now? How would things be different in the West?

Clippers

Now this is all speculative of course because there is no way possible to know for sure how things would be different, but most people would agree the Clippers would be nowhere near where they are at now without Deandre.

One of the biggest hurdles surrounding the Clippers was their financial situation last summer and their inability to bring in other free agents. If DeAndre would have left, they couldn’t have went out and replaced him with a big time name. They could only sign Jordan to the max because they could go over the tax to keep him.

Now factor that into Blake Griffin going Mike Tyson mode and you have a Los Angeles disaster most likely.

Can you imagine this Clippers team without DeAndre during this whole Griffin injury period? Sure they would have probably worked the waiver wire and trade deadline differently, but could they have brought in that big of an impact player?

I could safely say that with DeAndre Jordan being a Dallas Maverick, the Clippers would not be in the playoffs.

DeAndre Jordan

Jordan is having his best season of his career averaging 12 points and 14 rebounds a game with 36 double-doubles on the season. On the defensive end of the ball he is 2nd in the league in blocks with 131 on the season.

One of the major factors factoring into his initial decision of signing with the Dallas Mavericks was the fact that he could be a face of the franchise and cornerstone center in the league. For once, a majority of a team’s offense could go through him and the Mavs had committed to that as Dirk Nowitzki is on the tail end of his career.

Jordan obviously went back to play third fiddle but was fortunate to a degree with the drama surrounding Blake Griffin. Now Jordan, along with Chris Paul, have led the Clippers to the 4th spot in the West while only being a few games behind the Thunder for 3rd.

So could Jordan have had the same success this season for the Dallas Mavericks?

I actually think he would and that he would have made his first all-star team this season. Being on the Clippers, Chris Paul is the face of the franchise and deservedly had a spot on the all-star team since the Clippers record proved to have a representative. If you put DeAndre Jordan on the Dallas Mavericks with the same numbers, I believe he would have been in Toronto this year.

What the Clippers are giving Jordan right now is what the Mavericks would have been able to give him all season long. With Dirk being able to stretch the floor, the lane would be wide open for Jordan to do his thing. The Clippers obviously have Paul running the show, but the Mavs would have the pick-n-roll with Parsons that would give Jordan a similar style of play.

I could safely say that if DeAndre Jordan was a Dallas Maverick, he would have been an all-star and looked at as one of the top 2-3 centers in the league.

Mavericks

The topic we all don’t want to even think about, but one I will for the purpose of this piece.

Now that everyone’s Zaza Pachulia worshiping is back to ground level, I think it is safe to say that the majority of knowledgeable NBA fans would agree that the Mavericks would be a better team with DeAndre Jordan at center. If you don’t believe that, you can stop reading now.

Looking at the timeline, Jordan re-signed with the Clippers on July 9th, which was before Deron Williams was bought out from the Nets and Zaza Pachulia was still a member of the Milwaukee Bucks. Could the Mavs have still obtained the two players if Jordan didn’t back out? Absolutely, but there is no way to know for sure.

The Mavericks were rumored to be connected to numerous vets that were willing to come on board if Jordan didn’t back out, but after he backed out, the Mavericks obviously were on their heels trying to put together a competing roster. So for the sake of speculation, lets look at the locks of the roster if DeAndre would have stayed.

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Jordan, Nowitzki, Matthews, Parsons, Harris, Felton, Powell, and Anderson.

With or without the other players on the team now, this Mavericks team would be a force in the Western Conference.

I am in no way saying that they would be on the same level as the Golden State Warriors or San Antonio Spurs, but I do think this could have put them in the same category as the Clippers and Thunder fighting for that 3-4 seed.

Jordan’s presence would have lightened the load for both Matthews and Parsons as they came back from injury. More importantly, it would probably allow the Mavs a little more room to rest Nowitzki like they probably had planned before the season. His ability to play above the rim on both ends of the floor would give the Mavs a player they simply don’t have now.

I could safely say that if DeAndre Jordan was a Dallas Maverick, the Mavericks could have had home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

All of this brings a subtle reminder of just how good the Mavericks recovered after the debacle over the summer. Most teams would have thrown in the towel and played the tank card, but not Dallas. Even though they take a lot of criticism, the upper management in Dallas deserves a lot of credit for putting together a team that is still fighting for the 5th seed in the playoffs.

Next: Why Don't Big Names Come to Dallas?

Now we all just wait to see if we get blessed with a Mavericks-Clippers first round playoff series.