Rumors: Mavericks eyeing wild draft night move that could change everything

Dallas Mavericks, Jason Kidd, Nico Harrison
Dallas Mavericks, Jason Kidd, Nico Harrison | SOPA Images/GettyImages

The Dallas Mavericks avoided elimination on Friday when they beat the Boston Celtics 122-84. The team had five players score double-digit points, as the role players finally provided help to Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.

One of the stand-out players was Dante Exum. The Mavs guard played critical minutes for Dallas, scoring 10 points on 57 percent shooting. His defense was also a major factor. Coach Jason Kidd could look to continue to play Exum as this series goes on.

The biggest highlight though was Dereck Lively II's shooting. The Mavs' rookie knocked down his first 3-point shot of his career during the first quarter of Game 4. This is something the center had been working on during practice. Lively II teased his shooting a few days before, and him making his first career three in the Finals was big time.

Dallas will now look to players like Exum and Lively II to help the team avoid elimination on Monday.

Mavericks eyeing Bronny James with No. 58 overall pick in draft

However, it seems that no matter the outcome of the Finals, there is some wild news about Dallas' No. 58 overall pick in the NBA Draft. NBA insider Marc Stein reported Saturday that the Mavericks are interested in drafting Bronny James with the 58th pick if he is still available.

Dallas understands that James likely won't be on the board when they pick, but things could get very interesting if he somehow falls.

This isn't the first time news of Bronny being linked to Dallas broke. Last month, Stephen A. Smith detailed the possibility of the Mavs trading up for James, and stealing him from the Los Angeles Lakers. He explained that if Dallas did draft him, it could be in an effort to try to lure LeBron James to Dallas, as he had previously hinted at wanting to play with his son.

LeBron is seemingly always linked to Dallas due to his relationship with Kyrie and Luka. It was reported that during this past offseason, Irving tried to lure LeBron to team up with him and Doncic.

So, assuming Bronny somehow does fall in the draft, what could he bring to the Mavs?

The former USC guard is still a work in progress. This past college season he averaged 4.8 points per game and 2.8 rebounds per game. He is a savvy guard, who isn't afraid to attack the rim or use his hands to play hardcore defense.

The problem is he still has yet to develop fully. In his final college game, he scored 3 points and one rebound in 22 minutes while shooting 1-5 from the field.

He shot 26.7 percent from the 3-point line in college. Overall, he is an inconsistent shooter, who can get cold at times.

However it's possible he could develop into a fine player with the Mavs. The intangibles are there and his defense has the chance to be elite. He would definitely be a project, and the possibility of drafting Bronny to lure LeBron to Dallas is wild to think about.

So, is Dallas truly interested in Bronny himself? Or is the team using him to attract LeBron?

Either way, the Mavs will have plenty of questions to answer come draft night.

For all the latest on the Dallas Mavericks, stay tuned.

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