Mavericks are paying for treating the wrong player like an untouchable asset

At last season's NBA trade deadline, the Dallas Mavericks essentially made Max Christie untouchable in talks unless some team decided to really overpay for the then fourth-year guard. However, this decision looks more ill-advised in hindsight, as Christie's finish to the season didn't mirror how he started the year.

Christie still had a career year last season and is the type of budding young player that could've netted Dallas a first-round pick, but Dallas probably would've only traded him had they got multiple picks or an intriguing asset alongside a first-rounder.

He's a quick defender who exhibits great effort at the point of attack, but he's not elite in that category, and his shooting percentages started to revert back to the mean as the season trudged along. With teams having more advanced scouting reports on Christie due to him playing more minutes than he ever had in his career last season, this certainly played a factor in his production diminishing slightly.

Dallas could've sold high on Christie this past deadline

The months of February and March were particularly rough for him, as he shot just 30 percent from downtown in February and 35.6 percent from outside in March. Being around a more prolific shot creator in Kyrie Irving should help him get better looks next season, but his potential as a three-level scorer looked more limited as the season went along.

There weren't any potential packages for Christie that were leaked around the time of the trade deadline, but Dallas' front office should've had their ears peeled for offers more than reports suggest they did. The Mavericks may not have been able to foresee being able to create future financial flexibility with the Anthony Davis trade for too long before it happened, but now that they have, they could easily throw the full MLE at a more dynamic two guard this summer.

Someone like Quentin Grimes or Ayo Dosunmu would offer more elite defense next to Irving compared to Christie, and would probably be more dynamic on the offensive end as well. Those are the type of free agents Dallas could target this summer, and while there's no guarantee they can land someone like that, getting a two-way shooting guard of that caliber would make Christie's position on the roster more redundant.

Mavs' flexibility would've made trading Christie an easier pill to swallow

Furthermore, Dallas could've gotten a first-round pick for Christie in the coming seasons, which would be huge considering how limited their first-round draft capital is until 2031, outside of this upcoming draft.

The good news is Christie is only 23 years old and still has two years remaining on his deal with an annual salary of $8 million. This gives Dallas time to still find a trade for him if they deem it to be the best course of action, and he's still young enough to continue to develop into the player Dallas wants him to be, or to increase his value for a trade.

It's certainly not the end of the world that Dallas didn't get off Christie at this past deadline, but if his shooting slump from the end of the season is something that continues to trend in the wrong direction, then they missed an opportunity to sell high on him at this past deadline.

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