Jason Kidd quietly tipped the Mavericks' hand on an offseason move they can't delay

Behind Cooper Flagg, Naji Marshall was the Dallas Mavericks' second-best player last season, and needless to say, the organization recognizes his production. With Dallas holding Marshall's Early Bird rights, they have a decision to make this summer, as he'll be eligible for up to a four-year $56.8 million contract extension this July. Head coach Jason Kidd hinted at the possibility of this before the end of the season, as Marshall had a career year.

“I think individuals look at the season differently than the team record,” Kidd said in late March. “There are quite a few guys playing for extensions, so the business side kicks in. That puts the organization in a position to evaluate with all the changes. Using Naji as an example, he’s doing the right thing, and we have quite a few guys doing that."

Jason Kidd already endorsed a Naji Marshall extension this offseason

Marshall is entering the final season of a three-year $27 million deal, and if he were to wait till 2027 free agency to re-sign with the Mavericks, he'd be eligible for a five-year $73.9 million deal at that point, as Dallas would have his Full Bird rights by then. Dallas could look to shop Marshall ahead of the next trade deadline while his value is at a high point, but with his extension being at a fair dollar amount, they should steer away from this unless they're offered a bargain deal for him.

Either path is intriguing for the Mavericks, but with Marshall being in the middle in his prime after turning 28 years old in January, Dallas would be smart to nail him on an extension this offseason, plus they'd likely be committing to fewer years on the deal compared to if they waited till the summer of 2027.

Amidst all the adversity in Dallas, Marshall has been a consummate professional and has been vocal about his love for playing for the Mavericks as well as the city of Dallas. Adding Kyrie Irving and a lottery pick from the 2026 NBA Draft should alleviate a ton of the shot creation and playmaking burden that Marshall had to shovel this past season, which, in theory, should make him even more effective attacking in space and in one-on-one situations.

Marshall's fits great in Dallas, and the extension would be very reasonable

While Dallas won't be able to keep all their veterans with the Cooper Flagg era kicking off, Marshall fits extremely well in Dallas' system around Flagg as a smaller wing. He uses his bulk well defensively, even if he can struggle with quicker guards and wings at times. He has one of the best in-between games in the entire league and always keeps his dribble alive to get to his spots.

He shot a career-high 51 percent from the field despite only shooting 29.1 percent from outside, and also scored a career-high 15.2 points per game last season. Marshall may not average as many points next season, but his efficiency should still scale similarly and may even be better from downtown since he'll likely get more clean looks next season.

While someone like P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford have long-term fit questions in Dallas, this isn't the case with Marshall, as he's been a selfless leader and is the type of veteran Dallas needs to nail down long-term as the Flagg era fully kicks off. He's the type of player Dallas would want in a playoff situation alongside Flagg and Irving, and is a great tertiary initiator that can set his teammates up when needed, so a four-year $56.8 million extension would be more than fair this offseason.

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