5 Pipe dream trade targets for the Dallas Mavericks not named LeBron James

In what could end up being a trend of the offseason, Kyrie Irving and LeBron James stole headlines earlier this week. The Athletic's Shams Charania reported that Irving had reached out to James in an attempt to recruit him to the Dallas Mavericks.

It's quickly become clear that Irving wants the Mavericks to explore a trade for James. And why wouldn't he? Even at his age, James is still one of the better players in the league and could help the Mavericks as they look to bounce back after a forgettable season in which they missed the playoffs.

Still, a trade seems like a very unlikely scenario, especially considering James would have to force his way off of the Los Angeles Lakers, as he's under contract through the 2023-24 season.

But if the Mavs are playing the pipe dream game heading into the offseason, there are a few other non-James trade targets who could even be more worth it for the team.

5 Pipe dream trade targets for the Dallas Mavericks not named LeBron James: 5. Jerami Grant, Portland Trail Blazers

As the Mavericks look for a star in the frontcourt who could play next to Luka Doncic, Jerami Grant could emerge as a pipe dream sign-and-trade target this summer.

With the Portland Trail Blazers' future very much up in the air, there's a chance that Grant could explore options outside of Portland this offseason, especially if the team pivots toward a rebuild and considers trading Damian Lillard.

In that scenario, the Mavs should pivot away from trying to recruit LeBron and shift their efforts to trying to persuade Grant to move down south. Grant would be a great slasher to pair alongside Irving and Doncic.

He is also still a solid, versatile defender who would immediately help the Mavs as they look to take a step forward on the defensive end of the floor next season. That said, there are many dominoes that would need to fall for Grant to even emerge as a possibility for Dallas this offseason.