ESPN's Mavericks-Lakers trade idea would create more problems than it solves

ESPN created a series of mock trades that would "shake up the summer," and their first proposed trade between the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers should send Dallas running for the hills.

They proposed that Dallas should trade Daniel Gafford to Los Angeles in exchange for Dalton Knecht, Jarred Vanderbilt, and the No. 25 overall pick in this summer's draft. This deal would fix the Mavericks' problem of not having enough first-round draft capital moving forward, but it would create more issues than it solves by depleting their center depth and giving them a bad contract with Vanderbilt.

Dallas can't afford any bad contracts right now

Dallas did a great job of getting rid of many of their bad contracts by trading Jaden Hardy and D'Angelo Russell in the Anthony Davis trade at the trade deadline, and bringing in Vanderbilt would put them back in the same boat they were in before. He's set to make over $25 million over the next two seasons, and while his defense remains strong, he's not worth over $12 million per season.

Vanderbilt averaged just 4.4 points per game last season for the Lakers while shooting a career-low 47.1 percent from the field. Once the playoffs hit, his role shrank even more. He only played 76 minutes over nine games he was active for. That included two DNP-CDs from JJ Redick.

This is not the type of player Masai Ujiri should be trying to take on as Dallas enters this new era, and Vanderbilt's contract, combined with his below-average offensive game and durability issues, are too severe to overlook.

Knecht is included in the deal as well, but his production and role decreased significantly in his sophomore season. He would give the Mavericks some shooting, but he wouldn't be a long-term fit like Dallas needs.

On top of this, losing Gafford would hurt more than Mavericks fans realize.

Losing Gafford would be a huge gut punch

With Gafford in trade rumors for the last two seasons, naturally, he has been included in many mock trades. It seemed like a lock that he would be traded at this season's trade deadline, but Dallas decided to hold on.

Now, even with Dereck Lively II on track to return by training camp, losing Gafford would be a major loss. He was the Mavericks' starting center when they made the 2024 NBA Finals, and without him, their depth would hit a serious wall.

Lively II would be the only true center under contract for next season if they make this deal, and after playing just seven games last season, this would put way too much pressure on his shoulders to remain healthy. This is the last thing he needs after playing less than 100 games through three seasons.

The extra draft pick may not be worth it

One of the only positives from this deal is that Dallas would net a first-round pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Los Angeles is locked in to pick at No. 25 overall, meaning that the Mavericks would then have three first-round picks (9, 25, and 30) to go along with the second-round pick they acquired as part of the Davis trade (48). This is quite a haul to kick off the Cooper Flagg era, and Dallas would have multiple cracks at finding some young players to add to their core.

Even with many players going back to college, this year's draft class is extremely stacked. The Mavericks could address a handful of areas of need in the draft if they acquired an additional first-round pick from the Lakers, and they could even look to package some of their picks together to move up in the first round. They need as much talent as they can get around Flagg, and another first-round pick in the draft is definitely something that Ujiri should be eyeing.

After this year, Dallas doesn't have full control of any of their own first-round picks until 2031. This makes this summer's draft extremely important, and having as many chances as possible to find solid role players to put alongside Flagg will be crucial to the rebuild.

Adding another first-round pick is appealing, but sacrificing center depth and taking on Vanderbilt's contract is a major risk for a team looking to rebuild around Flagg.

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