Dallas has already reshaped part of its roster this offseason, but Chris Haynes believes Masai Ujiri is still waiting for the right deal before making another move.
The Dallas Mavericks have already completed a six-team trade that brought in Santi Aldama, Marcus Sasser and the draft rights to Tarik Biberovic. That might not be the last move of the offseason.
Chris Haynes, senior NBA insider for NBA on Prime and The Association on NBA TV, told DLLS Sports on Sunday that Dallas is still active, with one important detail about how Masai Ujiri approaches trades.
"From what I was told, as of yesterday, Masai is very open to doing that," Haynes said. "But he won't make a change just to make a change. And so I wouldn't be surprised if the Dallas Mavericks have something left up their sleeve. Those three players that you mentioned before, those are players that these teams, they have a desire for. So Masai is up for business. He's always open for business. So I can't anticipate an idle offseason for the duration of the match."
The three players Haynes referenced are PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford and Klay Thompson. Marc Stein reported earlier this month that all three are available in trade discussions.
Haynes also explained why none of those deals has happened yet.
"The Dallas Mavericks have been reluctant or at least haven't liked the pitches that have been coming their way," Haynes said. "But those guys, those names, we're going to continue to hear and evolve. And the reason why is because they don't match up with the age category as the youth movement that they've got going on.".
Dallas is not holding onto Washington, Gafford and Thompson because it wants to keep them. The Mavericks are holding onto them because the offers have not met their asking price. Ujiri has shown he is willing to move veterans, but only if the return improves the roster over the long term.
Dallas still has valuable financial flexibility. The Anthony Davis trade exception originally totaled $20.8 million. After using part of it to absorb Marcus Sasser's $5.2 million salary, the Mavericks still have roughly $15.6 million available to absorb another contract without sending matching salary in return.
Dallas also has access to the full $15 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception. That gives the front office another tool to add talent or help facilitate a larger trade.
Haynes' message is straightforward. The offseason is not over. Ujiri is waiting for the right offer. If one arrives, expect Dallas to make another move.
