Mavericks young guard’s season will determine if he’s trade bait or core piece

The Dallas Mavericks desperately needed to add a third scorer or star on their team when the team fell to the Boston Celtics in the 2024 NBA Finals. The team did so by completing a sign-and-trade for elite 3-point shooter Klay Thompson.

Despite losing guards Tim Hardaway Jr. and Derrick Jones Jr., Dallas acquired Quentin Grimes and signed forward Naji Marshall.

The Mavs have a ton of guard talent already with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving at the helm and also added guards in free agency such as Grimes. However, one guard off the bench could be in a tough position next season as he's due for a contract after the 2024-25 season concludes.

Jaden Hardy's season will determine if he’s trade bait or core piece

For Jaden Hardy, he enters the season on the final year of his contract and will be a restricted free agent after the upcoming season is over. According to Spotrac, Hardy has a cap hit of just a little over $2 million.

That isn't much of a salary for a bench player, but Hardy's season can determine if he will be a core piece in Dallas or if he could be a potential trade piece at the deadline. Hardy is in the same scenario as bench guard Dante Exum is also due for a contract after 2025.

Hardy and the Mavs are in a tough place as the guard just turned 22 years old on July 5. Hardy had his numbers drop from his rookie season in 2022-23 to 2023-24. Points per game, field goal percentage, 3-point percentage, minutes per game, and free throw shooting all dropped.

Hardy put his struggles from the regular season behind him in the playoffs, as he typically provided great production off the bench. He was also efficient from downtown as he shot 41 percent from three in the playoffs.

Despite the low-scoring numbers in the Playoffs (4.2 points per game), Hardy was a key piece for the Mavs' series win against the LA Clippers in the opening round as well as in the Western Conference Finals against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

So what would happen if Hardy underperforms? It could be likely he would be a piece that could be traded. The Mavs are in a win-now phase after coming off a Finals loss.

Buying teams might be interested in a young player who has potential, and could definitely be interested in Hardy. If Hardy were to exceed expectations on a stacked guard team, he could become a key piece of the rotation and the team's core moving forward.

This is a tough situation for Hardy and the Mavs, as he is behind several guards in the rotation, but he also needs minutes to develop. Only time will tell if Hardy proves he is a key piece of Dallas' core, and if he does, a new contract could be on the way.