Pros and Cons of Signing Monta Ellis

PROS – Kohl Rast

Veteran leadership

The Dallas Mavericks have great veterans and locker room guys already so this would not be a big thing for the team, but it could be an added benefit. The problem with the veterans that Dallas currently has is that most of them are leaders on the bench but not so much on the court. As of right now, Dirk Nowitzki is the only consistent offensive threat from the veterans on the Mavs.

I’m not saying that offense is the most important thing right now, but having a guy that can be a voice in the locker room and then back it up with 18-20 points a night could help bring the whole team together. It is a bit risky just because of his age, but if Dallas can bring Monta in for cheap and/or a short contract, this would be a great move to try and push the Mavs into contention.

Scoring Ability

This is the obvious major contribution that Monta Ellis would be helpful in Dallas and the big one that has me wanting this deal to be possible. Dallas’ offense last year was incredibly difficult to watch at times. One of the most painful sights to see is when Dirk Nowitzki is struggling to find his shot and that happened on multiple occasions last season. With no absolute scorer on the roster other than Dirk, we could really use a boost in that department.

Although Monta is not the sharpshooter of the century, his jump shot is respectable enough for defenses not to be able to sag off of him. Combine that with his excellent ability to get to the rim and you have a dynamic offensive talent that Dallas has been missing since, well…Monta. This will help open up shooters like Wes Matthews, Dirk, and even Barnes at times, as well as take some of the load off of Dennis Smith Jr. who will be a focal point of the offense next season, presumably.

Money

Listen, Monta had a good thing in Dallas before heading to Indiana. He worked well with the team, Carlisle and him got along for the most part, and there were no locker room concerns at all. All these things together make me believe that Ellis may be interested in a smaller deal to come to a team he likes being with.

He is only 31 years old and can still shoot the lights out of the gym so any hope of getting him to a veteran minimum may be unlikely, but considering he just got waived at only $2.2 mil/year, anything seems possible. Regardless of the veteran minimum, however, it is clear that Ellis is going to be on a pretty small contract, perfect for the Mavericks. Although we won’t want to offer him multiple years, it may be worth a 3 year deal with the 3rd a team option just to get some offense back on the team.

Next: Dallas Mavericks: JaMychal Green Should Be a Free Agent Target

Obviously there is an argument both for and against bringing Monta Ellis back, but the truth of it all is that the Mavs will probably not even be in the conversation to get him back. Either way, the team will make the moves that are needed to compete as much as possible next season.