Mavericks' D'Angelo Russell move hits Dallas with one-two punch of good and bad news

D'Angelo Russell first proved himself in 2016 when he made the NBA All-Rookie Team as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. Then in 2019, Russell became a first-time NBA All-Star during an outstanding breakout season with the Brooklyn Nets. Potential was high for Russell after his All-Star year, but he's had some struggles since.

Russell has bounced around the NBA with stops with the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Nets since the 2019-20 season. However, Russell is now off to the Lone Star State after signing a two-year, $13 million contract with the Dallas Mavericks just over an hour after free agency began.

While the value for Russell's contract at 29 years old was a solid one with him making about $6.5 million per season, it comes with a price of good and bad news for the Mavericks, as free agency will only pick up more tonight and over the next few days.

Russell is an outstanding signing, but now Mavs are out of roster spots

The Mavericks needed to sign a point guard in free agency, as Kyrie Irving is going to be recovering from an ACL injury until some point in 2026. Russell can start at point guard to start the 2025-26 season as Irving heals and be an excellent facilitator, shooter, and ball handler, but the bad news can come for fan-favorite guard Dante Exum, and anyone else who the Mavs may be targetting in free agency as their roster is now full after signing Russell.

Reports were already out that the Mavericks may not have been able to re-sign Exum, given how the Mavericks' roster is constructed. With the signing of Russell, the writing may be on the wall that Exum's chances of returning are very low, unless they make some sort of trade to open up a roster spot. Even if Exum can't return, Russell can be a solid replacement and a quality player to play while Irving is out, as he has formidable experience as a starter over the course of his 10-year NBA career.

With the Lakers and Nets combined in the 2024-25 season, Russell averaged 12.6 points per game and over five assists per game. Although his 3-point shooting was down in 2024-25, Russell is a 36.5 percent career 3-point shooter. Russell can be a great complement to Klay Thompson for 3-point shooting on Dallas' roster, as they will be unstoppable from three when those two share the floor.

Russell is also a clear upgrade over Exum in the backcourt. Russell averaged more points, rebounds, assists, and steals than Exum did in 2024-25, and his score-first style fits what Dallas needs more than Exum's steady hand. Russell has the ability to play more minutes than Exum as well, as Exum always seems to be battling injuries.

Along with Exum, signing Russell may have made Oliver-Maxence Prosper the Mavs' odd man out. Dallas having to trade Prosper would crush some fans, as he is only entering his third season, but he has not been as productive as initially expected.

Moving Prosper would help free up a roster spot for the team to bring back Exum or someone like Kai Jones. If Prosper were to stay, the chances of him riding the bench for a large part of the season would be high due to the Mavs' frontcourt depth. It hasn't helped that Prosper has never averaged more than four points per game in his two seasons as a Maverick, and they may dump him to make an extra roster spot.

Once Irving is ready to return, Russell can go to the bench and be the backup point guard. This is another part of the signing that many people are overlooking, as he is poised to be an incredible backup point guard during the second half of the season and into the playoffs.

The veteran experience of Russell, combined with all of his aforementioned skills, should have Mavs fans jumping for joy when breaking down this signing, but the fact that Dallas has no roster spots available anymore is not news that fans wanted to hear on the opening night of free agency.