Dallas Mavericks' top 3 'realistic' trade options ahead of 2024-25 season

The 2024-25 NBA season is less than two months away, and every team still has work to do before the quest for the Larry O'Brien begins.

While the Dallas Mavericks enter next season with arguably their most stacked roster of the Luka Doncic era, there are still ways that they can get better ahead of the trade deadline.

The Mavs have made a trade at the trade deadline for four seasons in a row, and it would be a shock to no one if they made a move this year as well.

Dallas Mavericks' top 3 'realistic' trade options ahead of 2024-25 season

Dallas has several players who will likely be out of the rotation who are good enough to receive minutes elsewhere, and Nico Harrison is always looking for ways to make the team better.

The Mavs made two separate trades this offseason, one being for Quentin Grimes and the other one being a sign-and-trade for Klay Thompson, and there are several players from around the league who could end up in Dallas before All-Star Weekend.

Greg Swartz of Bleacher Report predicted each team's "top-three realistic trade targets," and some of the Mavs' listed targets would be intriguing fits.

3. Dorian Finney-Smith

When the Dallas Mavericks traded for Kyrie Irving at the end of the 2022-23 season, fans were ecstatic to see Irving play next to Luka Doncic. While most of the reactions from fans were filled with excitement, some of this excitement was drowned out by the departure of Dorian Finney-Smith.

Finney-Smith had spent his entire career in Dallas to that point, and he had become one of the most beloved role players in Mavs history. Last season for the Brooklyn Nets, Finney-Smith averaged 8.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game while shooting 42.1 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from downtown.

Finney-Smith has struggled as a shooter in both of his seasons in Brooklyn, and a change of scenery may be best for him. He has an interest in returning to Dallas at some point in his career, and this interest was replicated by the Mavs as recently as last season.

The Nets have maintained a high asking price for Finney-Smith ever since he began to get included in trade rumors, and if traded to Dallas, he'd provide needed frontcourt depth.

Outside of P.J. Washington and Naji Marshall, the Mavs don't have someone who can be consistently trusted to fill in at power forward. Maxi Kleber's inconsistent shooting and injuries could make Dallas want to trade for a more reliable option such as Finney-Smith, and Dallas' defense and size off the bench would definitely improve.