Father of Dallas Mavericks Veteran is Ready For A Trade This Offseason

After not being in the rotation for most of the playoffs, the father of one Mavs veteran is ready for the teams to go a separate way

Feb 8, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Tim Hardaway Jr. (10) dribbles against New York Knicks guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) during the half quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports / Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

The Dallas Mavericks are entering the offseasons with some tweaks to make if they want to make it back to the NBA Finals. They look outmatched in five games against the Boston Celtics but are restricted with the moves they can make because of the new luxury tax rules.

Nico Harrison, General Manager of the Mavericks, said in a press conference Friday that he expects the top 7 or 8 players from last season to still be on the team next season, which had some Mavs fans concerned that Tim Hardaway Jr. may still be on the team after falling out of the rotation in the playoffs. His father, Tim Hardaway Sr., isn't expecting that to happen.

Hardaway Sr. made an Instagram on Wednesday congratulating his son on his season, to which someone responded by saying the Mavs are going to trade him this offseason. Hardaway Sr. responded to that comment by saying "Yes they are. And we want to have a new opportunity to shine. We didn't like what [happened]. We are ready to go."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tim Hardaway, Sr. (@the_original_crossover_king)

READ MORE: Pistons to Interview Mavericks Assistant Coach Sean Sweeney for Head Coach Vacancy

A report also surfaced on Friday that Tim Hardaway Jr. is preparing for a trade this offseason, as both sides are ready for a fresh start. He's on the last year of his contract and is set to make over $16 million, a high number for a player who wasn't in the rotation when they needed him to be.

Hardaway Jr. came to Dallas in the trade for Kristaps Porzingis in 2019, spending the last six years with the Mavericks. He's averaged over 15 PPG in his time with the franchise, but his high volume of 3-point attempts leaves his efficiency numbers lackluster.

How the Mavs could move off of the high-priced salary has yet to be seen. Whether they'll have to salary dump him like they did with Davis Bertans last offseason or if they'll be able to acquire an actual asset for him will be one of the more intriguing storylines for Dallas this offseason.

They could just dump his salary to a team like the Detroit Pistons to have enough space to bring back Derrick Jones Jr., who played a vital role in shoring up the Mavericks' defense in the last quarter of the season and in the playoffs, or they could try to break his contract into a couple of different smaller priced players. The Mavs don't have a lot of tradable future draft capital and will want to be selective on how they manage those.

Hardaway Sr., a Hall-of-Famer and former 5-time All-Star, has been very vocal this season on his displeasure with the Mavericks' utilization of his son, who was third on the team in scoring in the regular season but was a complete non-factor for 90% of the playoffs. He had many complaints about this team, ranging from no offensive off-ball movement to Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving not sharing the ball enough. Both parties should move on at this point.

READ MORE: Could the Knicks Be Interested in Dallas Mavericks' Starter in Free Agency?

Stick with MavericksGameday for more coverage of the Dallas Mavericks throughout the NBA Offseason

Follow MavericksGameday on Twitter and Austin Veazey on Twitter