Mavericks will hate ESPN's latest brutal Quentin Grimes trade update

In a recent episode of "The Hoop Collective," ESPN dropped a stat that every Dallas Mavericks fan will hate when looking back at the Caleb Martin for Quentin Grimes swap from last season. After one month of basketball, Martin has finally scored more total points on the season (22) than Grimes' points-per-game average (17.1 after last night's game against the Toronto Raptors).

This stat embodies how badly this trade has worked out for the Mavericks over nine months later, and as long as Grimes keeps dominating in Philly, fans aren't going to forget about it either.

In 14 games for the Philadelphia 76ers this season, Grimes is averaging 17.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.0 steals per game while shooting a career-high 47.5 percent from the field and 40.9 percent from downtown. He has become one of the Sixers' staples despite arriving in Philadelphia less than a year ago, and the Mavericks' decision to trade him looks worse by the day.

Mavericks' Grimes-Martin swap just keeps getting worse

Dallas didn't believe that they could give him the money that he wanted in free agency that summer, so they punted on him at the trade deadline and brought in Martin. He is under contract until the end of the 2027-28 season, and this is the last thing that the Mavericks should want. Martin will make nearly $30 million over the next three seasons, and paying someone who can barely find his way onto the floor this much is a nightmare situation for Dallas.

Having awful contracts on your books is one of the most crippling things that a team can deal with, and his play on the court does not justify him being the seventh-highest paid player on the team.

Despite being a strong defender, Martin's lack of confidence on offense and struggles as a shooter have made him someone that Jason Kidd can't rely upon, and the Mavericks would've been much better off keeping Grimes.

To make matters worse, no team offered Grimes a big deal in free agency, and he ended up signing a one-year $8.7 million qualifying offer to remain with the Sixers. This is less than the Mavericks are paying Martin this season (around $9.6 million), and this is going to be a trade that fans aren't going to get over.

Especially if Martin remains on the roster for a few more years.

The Luka Doncic trade will always be the move that fans remember from last season, but the Grimes trade could turn out to be extra catastrophic as well if Grimes continues his upward rise while Martin's value steadily depreciates. The Mavericks would've been better off losing Grimes for nothing rather than having Martin's contract on their books, and this trade has been a disaster.

Regardless of how you look at it.

The fact that Caleb Martin just now scored more points than Quentin Grimes averages per game, one month into the season shows just how much disparity there is between their game. Dallas will likely be stuck in this tough spot with Martin until they trade him, cut him, or his contract expires.