Mavs Trade Rumor: Dallas 'Linked' to Reunion with Dorian Finney-Smith

With the Dallas Mavericks reportedly in the market for an upgrade at the forward position, could former MFFL favorite Dorian Finney-Smith be in play?
Mavs Trade Rumor: Dallas 'Linked' to Reunion with Dorian Finney-Smith
Mavs Trade Rumor: Dallas 'Linked' to Reunion with Dorian Finney-Smith /
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With just under three weeks remaining until the NBA trade deadline, the rumors and speculation is starting to swirl, and the Dallas Mavericks seem to be involved in many of them.

Currently, the Mavs sit as the No. 6 team in the Western Conference, but to truly enter contender status among the top teams in the league, Dallas needs to amp up its defense on the perimeter.

On Wednesday, Yahoo! Sports' Jake Fischer reported that while the Mavs had conversations with Toronto regarding Pascal Siakam before he was traded to the Indiana Pacers, there remains to be several veteran forwards that Dallas has its eye on, including an 'old friend.'

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Andrew Dieb-USA TODAY Sports

"The Mavericks continue to be linked to various versatile forwards, from Andrew Wiggins to P.J. Washington to old friend Dorian Finney-Smith, according to league sources," Fischer wrote.

For the Mavs, when the Kyrie Irving trade was made, it felt as if the city of Dallas was almost equally excited for Irving's arrival and upset for DFS's departure -- that's how much the MFFL's and the Mavs' organization loved Finney-Smith.

On the season, Finney-Smith is averaging 9.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game while shooting a career-high 40.1 percent from downtown in just under 29 minutes per game. Needless to say, he'd still fit in like a glove in Dallas.

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Though the Mavs may have interest in reuniting with Finney-Smith, they'll be one of many teams in the market for the eight-year veteran who can fill a 3-and-D need for any contending team. With that in mind, what would be the cost for Dallas to bring Finney-Smith back?

HoopsHype's Michael Scotto reported last week that in a trade for Finney-Smith, the Nets want the 'equivalent of two first-round picks.'

For Dallas, two first-round picks for Finney-Smith feels like too high of a price to pay, especially considering that a 2029 first-round pick was attached to him in order to get Irving on the Mavs. But, Dallas could offer Brooklyn a choice of Grant Williams or Richaun Holmes for salary filler along with either Jaden Hardy or O-Max Prosper and one future first-round pick ... or perhaps even a pick swap.

If the Mavs could shed the contracts of either Williams or Holmes along with keeping their preference of Hardy or Prosper, bringing back Finney-Smith at that cost feels like a worthy investment. Let's see how the market plays out over the next few weeks.



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Michael Mulford
MICHAEL MULFORD

Michael Mulford is a writer/editor for Dallas Basketball, where he extensively covers the Dallas Mavericks. He also covers the Chicago Bulls as the Managing Editor for Bulls Wire of USA Today Sports Media Group. Mulford grew up in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and graduated from the University of North Texas in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in Recreation, Event, and Sports Management. He began his pursuit of sports writing in 2017 with Dallas Sports Fanatic, where he covered the Mavericks’ G League affiliate, Texas Legends. He then became the Managing Editor of Dallas Sports Fanatic just one year later and has covered the Mavericks as a credentialed media member since 2018, including covering numerous playoff games between 2021-22 and covering the team at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas in 2019. In his time covering the Mavericks, Mulford has conducted numerous interviews for exclusive stories including with Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki, former Maverick and current VP of Basketball Ops Michael Finley, former Mavericks GM Donnie Nelson, and more. You can follow and interact with Mulford on Twitter at @TheMulf.