Dallas Mavericks: 1 Trade and 1 free agent signing to win the offseason

The Dallas Mavericks were knocked out by the LA Clippers in a hard-fought seven-game series in the opening round of the playoffs. They were up 2-0 and held a 20-point advantage in the first quarter of Game 3, but Kawhi Leonard and company never went away.

The Clippers exposed several of the Mavs flaws in the series. Dallas had a difficult time keeping a lead when Luka Doncic was not on the court. The Mavericks also found out that their interior defense is not where it needs to be as a team with title aspirations.

Heading into the offseason with a brand new front office, the Mavs must put more talent on their roster.

Dallas Mavericks can make two key moves and win the offseason

If Josh Richardson declines his player option, and the Mavs relinquish Tim Hardaway Junior’s cap hold, they could create just over $34 million to spend in free agency. Shedding salary via trade would give Dallas even more. Superstar Luka Doncic will be on the last year of his rookie contract, so this offseason has to be a well-spent one.

The elephant in the room seems to be if Kristaps Porzingis and Luka can play well together. If it is deemed that they can work on their chemistry, the Mavericks just need to add a secondary ball-handler and shot creator. If they cannot, fans could potentially see a lot of Mavs moving pieces in the next couple of months.

The newly assembled front office is going to have their hands full this offseason. Here is one trade and one free agent signing that could potentially fix all of the Dallas Mavericks’ problems.

Next: Trade to pursue