One year after selecting Cooper Flagg with the number one overall pick, the Dallas Mavericks are still trying to find a forward that will fit alongside him.
Having a strong pair on the wing is important for roster construction in today’s NBA. The Mavs will need to toy with all of the new pieces that have been brought to the puzzle.
“The three most notable additions here all fall into that big wing category: Morez Johnson with the No. 9 overall pick, Santi Aldama in a trade with Memphis and Zaccharie
Risacher in a trade with Atlanta. Is the fit here optimal? Probably not. Cooper Flagg should probably be a long-term power forward. That’s the easiest way to surround him with shooting and maximize his defensive strengths, but on this roster, he’s probably exclusively a small forward,“ CBS Sports contributor Sam Quinn wrote.
“But he’s 19. The Mavericks have time to figure out what does and doesn’t work beside him, so taking swings at forward is a reasonable starting point.”
The Mavs know their timeline towards contention is still a few years away. Taking flyers on as many players as possible is an ideal path for the team to take at this time.
The team needs to find as many low-risk, high-reward moves that will put them in position to get closer to building the right squad around Flagg for years to come. This could mean moving on from Klay Thompson and Kyrie Irving in trades later this offseason or by the February trade deadline, but we’ll see what Masai Ujiri has up his sleeve.
Mavs Moneyball community, how do you feel about the team’s offseason decisions? Let us know in the comments section below.
