NBA Free-Agency Error: Mavs Chose JaVale McGee Over Bruce Brown?

It looks like maybe it could be a “second time’s a charm” situation for the Dallas Mavericks in their pursuit for Bruce Brown.

The NBA offseason is off and running, and the Dallas Mavericks kicked it off with an active night during the NBA Draft that featured multiple trades.

But as Mavs GM Nico Harrison stated following the draft, "No, it’s go time. We’re not done at all ... This is just the beginning."

Reported on Monday morning's episode of Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective, ESPN's Tim MacMahon said that not just do the Mavs have interest in Nuggets free-agent wing Bruce Brown, but they might have passed up the chance to sign him last summer.

"Our old buddy [Marc Stein] linked him to the Mavericks. I've heard similar things," MacMahon said. "I actually heard that the Mavericks maybe could have had him last summer but thought that JaVale McGee was the bigger prize."

Well, that certainly hurts for Mavs fans to hear, as they all know how McGee's season went. But for the Mavs, you live and you learn, and it seems as if Harrison and company have taken a step forward heading into this offseason. 

The Nuggets can only offer Brown up to $7.8 million while his market seems to be starting around the Mid-Level Exception, which is at $12.4 million. For the Mavericks, their draft night trade of shedding Davis Bertans' contract helped open up the full MLE. NBA Insider Marc Stein reported on Saturday that Dallas would utilize to 'pursue top wings in free agency (starting with Denver’s Bruce Brown).'

It's surely possible that teams with an abundance of cap space like the Houston Rockets or San Antonio Spurs could throw a bag at Brown that's higher than the MLE but you'd imagine that after coming off winning a championship with the Nuggets, Brown would opt to play for a surefire potential playoff team. 

And though the Mavericks proved to not be that, they're setting themselves up for a huge bounce back season in 2023-24 and Brown could be a big part of that.

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