Could Another Nerlens Noel Type Trade Be on the Horizon?

The Nerlens Noel situation might not have turned out like Dallas wanted, but could they pull off a similar deal this trade deadline?

Last year, the Dallas Mavericks stole the headlines on deadline day when they pulled off what many thought was a steal.

Dallas sent off their second year forward, Justin Anderson, along with the expiring contract of Andrew Bogut and two future second round picks for Nerlens Noel.

They got their new “Tyson Chandler start kit” at center and things were looking up despite their poor record. Fast forwarding until now, things obviously didn’t work out for Noel and Dallas but that doesn’t mean the Mavericks are done pulling off a similar deal this year.

Noel was set to hit restricted free agency and Philadelphia was unsure of what they wanted to pay Noel that coming summer. Instead, they decided to ship Noel off to Dallas, gain assets in return, and skip the whole free agency of Noel all together.

It was a smart, buy-low option for Dallas that simply didn’t turn out, but still a deal that made sense at the time.

This year, a similar deal could be made.

At the moment, there are a plethora of players set to hit restricted free agency on teams that might be weary of what they will pay for them this coming summer.

Rodney Hood, Julius Randle, Jabari Parker, Marcus Smart and others are a handful of young players set to his restricted free agency this coming summer.

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For Dallas, do they have the same pieces like they used in the Nerlens Noel deal?

-Dallas owns all of their first round picks moving forward, so for the right player, they could potentially attach a future first with a heavy protection on the pick.

-Last year, the expiring contract was Andrew Bogut while this year it is Josh McRoberts at $6 million.

-Last year, the young piece was Justin Anderson while this year it could be Nerlens Noel, Seth Curry, Yogi Ferrell or someone else.

It is unclear if Dallas would be willing to give up such as package for another restricted free agent situation, but it is ironic that they could put together a near identical package as last year in the Nerlens Noel deal.

For the restricted free agents that could be on the market this year, Dallas might have to take back a contract in the deal to help the deal go through.

Next: Could Dallas Help Facilitate a George Hill Trade?

For a longer list of restricted free agents the Mavericks could target on the trade market, read here.