Dallas Mavericks: Should the Mavs take a flyer on Stanley Johnson?

The Dallas Mavericks are going into the 2019-2020 season with a very young core in Kristaps Porzingis and Luka Doncic. Could the Mavs add a low-risk, high-reward player in Stanley Johnson to fill a need and round out the roster?

With the 8th pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, the Detroit Pistons selected Stanley Johnson from the University of Arizona. The former Tucson resident has had a rough start to his career as a former lottery pick and is turning out similar to Mario Hezonja. Sometimes they work out, sometimes they don’t. And sometimes they are late bloomers and need to be in the right system. Should the Dallas Mavericks be interested in the 23-year-old?

Johnson was viewed as the next Ron Artest at the NBA level with a 6’11” wingspan and excellent defensive upside. Every team needs a Metta World Peace, whether that is a part of a big three or as a glue guy that can come in and guard the perimeter and jam the offensive players during a switch.

The New Orleans Pelicans decided not to extend the qualifying offer this summer, which will make Johnson an unrestricted free agent. Prior to the trade deadline in 2019, Detroit made the decision to move on from the wing by sending him to Milwaukee. The Bucks then redirected him to New Orleans for Nikola Mirotic and four second-round picks.

What Stanley Johnson could bring to the Mavericks is a young wing that is notorious for defense. On the surface, Johnson has insane athletic ability, but mental lapses, turnovers and clunking three-pointers caused him to take a seat on the sideline.

A contract for Johnson wouldn’t be too much at all. Fighting for a shot on a new team and cracking a wing rotation should be his main goal. The Dallas Mavericks are currently in need of defense, three-point shooting and extra forwards. Johnson checks two of those wants for Rick Carlisle. I could see the team offering him the veteran minimum or at most the mid-level exception.

Johnson shares the same agent with Luka Doncic, so there is already some familiarity with the franchise and the agent.

Johnson is still only 23 years old and has a whole vault of untapped potential. With a stable organization and good coaching, we could see the complete player he was drafted in hopes of becoming. Donnie Nelson and the Mavericks have plenty of cap space to work with. Let’s see if they can snag a player or two for the veteran minimum. Or at least a training camp invite.

Free Agency starts Sunday at 6:00pm eastern time and will be a wild day for player movement. Stay plugged in for more Mavericks news, analysis and opinions on The Smoking Cuban.