As the veteran center receives a formal training camp invitation, a crowded 15-man roster and potential trades loom over his quest for one final season in Dallas.
Maybe he can help. Or maybe it's just a courtesy, a gesture handed to a long-time and very solid Dallas Mavs soldier.
But the Mavs are now reportedly expected to offer Dwight Powell a formal training camp invitation. ... even though there doesn't seem to be any room at the inn around here anymore.
Colleague Marc Stein of The Stein Line issued the report this weekend, and if you are a fan of Powell's, it seems like positive news.
The blockade? Dallas already has 15 players on standard NBA contracts.
Earlier this week, Powell was in attendance with the Mavericks at a Kyrie Irving-led minicamp in Los Angeles.
On Friday afternoon, the Mavericks posted photos of players working out together at the PLYRS UNTD Performance Center in Playa Vista. The building opened Aug. 4 as a training center open only to NBA players. Irving gave the National Basketball Players Association direct input on the renovation.
That's all good as it relates to the return of Kyrie, who tore the ACL in his left knee on March 3, 2025, and has not played in an NBA game since. Dallas ruled him out for the 2025-26 season on Feb. 18.
But what about Dwight?
The 35-year-old center has been an unrestricted free agent since his three-year, $12 million contract ran out after last season.
Back on July 27, Stein reported in The Stein Line that Dallas had 16 players on standard contracts, one above the in-season maximum. It was noted that Powell had been saying in touch with the team “in hopes that he still factors into their plans somehow ... (Powell) has been hoping to play at least one more season.''
Since then, Dallas has shuffled the deck a bit, with the roster count having dropped to 15 on Aug. 21 as the Mavericks announced a contract buyout with Klay Thompson, freeing him to sign with the Miami Heat.
NBA teams can carry up to 21 players in the offseason. Bur eventually? Only 15 can hold standard contracts once the regular season begins.
That would seem to put the pinch on Powell, no matter his offseasons status.
(The Mavs might have more moves up there sleeve at center, with a trade of Daniel Gafford among the issues being discussed, as noted in the above video.)
Across 12 seasons, Powell has played 763 games for the Mavericks and averaged 6.5 points and 4.3 rebounds in 17.6 minutes. He played all 82 games in 2021-22. He also set a franchise record by making 18 consecutive field goals over a four-game stretch.
Powell signed the three-year, $12 million deal in July 2023, and last summer he picked up a $4 million player option to stay for 2025-26. Last season, he appeared in 63 games with 12 starts and averaged 3.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 14.3 minutes on 64.4-percent shooting.
Generally speaking, he's a great guy to have in the locker room and maybe continues to be a useful helper on the court, too. But the Mavs are moving in a new direction as an organization ... and that direction might not have room for Dwight Powell.
