Grade the Trades: Marks for all 3 of the Dallas Mavericks' offseason deals

Nico Harrison has only been the GM of the Dallas Mavericks for two seasons and has already made his mark on the franchise. He has convinced other GMs from across the league to take some of their worst contracts to get some gems in return.

Dallas Mavericks Head Coach Jason Kidd said after last season that the Mavericks would have a whole bunch of new faces on the roster, and he wasn't joking. Derek Lively II, Richaun Holmes, Grant Williams, and Olivier-Maxence Prosper are just some of the new players joining the Mavericks organization.

If you look at what the Mavericks did on draft night, he was able to trade back into the first round and get Holmes, and draft Prosper and Lively. Prosper eventually went on to become a fan favorite after his run at the NBA Summer League. Even Lively II looked like he would have a promising future for the Mavericks organization.

Grade the Trades: Marks for all 3 of the Dallas Mavericks' offseason deals

He also hasn't wasted any time overhauling this roster this offseason. From getting rid of one of the worst remaining contracts they had in Davis Bertans to trading for Grant Williams, Nico Harrison has been making great moves. A lot of NBA reporters have gone on to praise Harrison for completely upgrading the Mavs roster.

If he's able to swing a starting center away from a team with Tim Hardaway Jr. and JaVale McGee's contract and a future draft pick, he might as well win GM of the off-season. Let's take a look at how Harrison has been able to pull off some of these deals he's made this offseason and grade each move.

3. Dallas Mavericks land Dereck Lively II on draft night

This was one of my favorite trades that the Dallas Mavericks made this summer. Let me get into the reason why Nico Harrison looked like a veteran GM here. The Mavs got rid of one of the biggest contracts they had in Davis Bertans and were able to get their future center, Derek Lively II, with the 12th overall pick in this year's draft.

Bertans was under contract for two more seasons and was set to make around $33 million if he remained with Dallas. There is an early termination clause in his contract that Bertans could be waived for five million dollars if he ended up not playing 75% of the 2023-24 season. This was a safe move for the Mavs as they shed a bad contract and don't have to worry about not playing him a certain amount.

The reason why I give this trade a B+ is due to the fact Harrison found a suitor for one of the most expensive contracts the Mavs had remaining on their roster. It also allowed Dallas to get the player that they were targeting with the 12th overall pick in Lively II.

This would have been an A+ grade if Lively II had played at least two more years of college basketball. Lively still has a lot to learn as a center, as he only played one year at Duke. The NBA is a completely different ball game than college basketball. Fans can't assume that he will be ready to start right away.

The thing that Lively II has going for him is that he is learning from one of the best centers that the Mavericks have had, Tyson Chandler. He was also often compared to Chandler during the pre-draft process.

He played a lot of minutes down in Vegas during the NBA Summer League. Dallas Mavericks Assistant Coach Jared Dudley made sure he went head-to-head against one of the best players at the Summer League, such as Chet Holmgren. He still has a way to go before becoming an NBA starter, but the Mavericks have a franchise cornerstone piece in Lively II.

2. Dallas Mavericks acquire Richaun Holmes and Olivier-Maxence Prosper on draft night

This is my second favorite trade of the offseason, and I can't wait to see both players Dallas got in this trade next season. The Kings traded Richaun Holmes and Olivier-Maxence Prosper to the Mavericks for a traded player exception.

Let's start off talking about veteran center Richaun Holmes.

Holmes is a center that the Mavericks tried to sign in free agency a while back before he resigned with the Kings on a long-term deal. Holmes just didn't receive the same role and playing time once the Kings traded for Sabonis. Hopefully, a change of scenery can get him back to playing at a high level.

With the way the Mavericks try to feed the ball into the paint, you can expect Holmes to thrive and contribute on the court offensively and defensively. Even Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was saying he is the "most underrated pickup of the summer." I can't wait to see how Jason Kidd uses him next season.

Now let's talk about the player with the draft pick that we received from the Kings as part of the deal, Olivier-Maxence Prosper. The Marquette power forward instantly became a fan favorite during Summer League play. Fans are already raving about how Prosper can become Dallas' sixth man of the future.

He had a rough last Summer League game where he constantly turned the ball over and just had a bad day. However, that was the only rough game that he had in Vegas this summer. Once he gets some more guidance and works on his game, this guy is going to go down as a huge steal in the 2023 NBA Draft.

The reason why I give this trade an A+ is the Mavericks were able to get another first-round talent in this year's draft and get a true veteran backup center. Both players are going to provide valuable minutes next season.

1. Dallas Mavericks sign-and-trade for Grant Williams through a three-team trade with Boston and San Antonio

Now this was like the cherry on top for Maverick fans after those two trades that happened during the NBA Draft. The Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks, and the San Antonio Spurs were all involved in a three-team trade, where the Celtics sent Grant Williams to Dallas, and the Mavericks sent Reggie Bullock to the Spurs along with a pick swap. The Celtics and Mavs both acquired multiple second-round picks as part of the deal as well.

Bullock was a player on the Mavericks last year that didn't show up until December on the court and was set to receive $10 million in the final year of his contract next season. The Mavericks wanted to upgrade the forward position, and they did that by going out and getting Williams from Boston.

Williams played his college career at the University of Tennessee, where he was their small and power forward on the court. He averaged eight points and five rebounds a game last season with the Celtics. What I like about him is that he can play three positions on the court for the Mavericks.

As part of the sign and trade, Dallas signed him to a four-year, $54 million contract.

The reason why I give this trade an A- is the fact the Mavericks were able to shed Reggie Bullock's contract and was able to upgrade the forward position for a long time. The Mavericks were also able to pick up two second-round draft picks, which is turning into a significant trade piece these days.

Overall, Harrison has had a successful offseason upgrading this Mavericks roster without giving up significant key pieces such as Josh Green and Jaden Hardy. Kidd was right when he said fans would see a lot of new faces throughout the roster after last season. The moves Harrison made this offseason could set up the Mavericks for some deep playoff runs over the next couple of seasons.