'Operation Rescue Kevin Durant': 3-Way Trade Between Mavs, Lakers & Nets?
Given the Dallas Mavericks' draft picks situation – they still owe their 2023 first-round pick to the New York Knicks from the Kristaps Porzingis trade in 2019 – making a big, splashy trade will likely have to wait until at least next summer when that pick hopefully conveys to the Knicks.
However, NBA blockbuster trades can also be about being at the right place at the right time and having a little bit more creativity than the rest of the league. Luka Doncic is playing in his fifth season, and the Mavs have yet to pair him with a true co-star. Christian Wood has started off this season on a co-star pace, but the Mavs currently have him limited to sixth-man role off the bench.
Meanwhile, after all the offseason drama surrounding Kevin Durant's trade demand, his agreement to try to work things out with the Brooklyn Nets isn't going so well. The team is 1-5, with its latest loss coming against the tanking Indiana Pacers on Saturday night, and Kyrie Irving is causing off-court drama again as he typically finds a way to do every season.
At 34 years old, Durant isn't getting any younger, and he might need a change of scenery if he's going to make the most of his remaining years in the league. Although the Mavs are limited with how much draft capital they could send to Brooklyn in a potential Durant trade, GM Nico Harrison could shake things up a bit by trying a three-way trade with the Nets and winless Los Angeles Lakers. Here's our pitch for 'Operation Rescue Kevin Durant.'
Mavs receive: Kevin Durant
Lakers receive: Tim Hardaway Jr., Davis Bertans, Dwight Powell
Nets receive: Russell Westbrook, Josh Green, Lakers' 2027 first-round pick, Mavs' 2027 first-round pick, Mavs' 2029 first-round pick, and Mavs' pick swaps in 2024, 2026 and 2028.
UPDATE: After thinking about how quickly the Lakers probably hang up the phone with that first trade proposal, we got back in the lab to try to find something a little more feasible. After all, if Brooklyn is going to trade Durant, they might as well go ahead and clean house by trading Irving as well ... and we know LeBron James wants Irving in Los Angeles. So here's our second stab at this.
Mavs receive: Kevin Durant, Kendrick Nunn
Lakers receive: Kyrie Irving, Davis Bertans
Nets receive: Russell Westbrook, Tim Hardaway Jr., Dwight Powell, Josh Green, Lakers' 2027 first-round pick, Lakers' 2029 first-round pick, Mavs' 2027 first-round pick, Mavs' 2029 first-round pick, and Mavs' pick swaps in 2024, 2026 and 2028.
Is that still a pie-in-the-sky idea? Perhaps ... but it's worth trying if you're the Mavs' front office. Worst-case scenario is that the Nets and Lakers say "no," and you simply move on to other ideas. Dallas will have more flexibility to get its foot in the door of big trades without help from a third team starting next summer, but if a big opportunity arrises before then, there's no time like the present – especially when teams are reaching high desperation levels.
Doncic is playing at an MVP level by averaging 35.2 points, 10.8 rebounds, 9.4 assists and 1.8 steals though five games, but the Mavs have just a 2-3 record to show for it. Durant is averaging 32 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.2 blocks per game with just a 1-5 record to show for it. Pairing Doncic and Durant is very much in the "pipe-dream" category, but the potential of that duo makes it one worth daydreaming about.
Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Mavericks? Click Here.
