Dallas Mavs Prepare for Star-Studded Showdown with Milwaukee Bucks; NBA Trade Talk
Coming off a 130-117 bounce-back win over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday, the Dallas Mavericks have gotten a much-deserved couple of days off before they take on the Milwaukee Bucks to conclude a four-game road trip on Saturday night.
Aside from Maxi Kleber, who remains out with a toe injury, the injury report is clean for the Mavs, as they’ll have Kyrie Irving back from a one-game absence due to a foot injury. This sets up a star-studded Saturday night showdown with Luka Doncic and Irving facing off against Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard — a must-watch for basketball fans everywhere this weekend.
On the latest episode of the Mavs Step Back Podcast, we discuss the Mavs’ big game against the Bucks, as they’ll try to do something they didn’t do all of last season — go seven games over .500. The Bucks will be playing on the second night of a back-to-back in what will also be their third game in four nights, but the Mavs have a good opportunity to secure the their 10th win of the season after multiple days of rest.
From there, the conversation shifts to NBA trade talk, including the latest rumor linking Irving to LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers yet again. Despite the L.A. media’s best efforts, though, we don’t see them being able to will that scenario into existence. In fact, we believe it’s much more logical for 38-year-old LeBron to join Irving and Doncic in Dallas, if anything.
Dallas Mavericks rookie Dereck Lively II slams home a dunk against the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night.
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
As far as other potential trades go, the Mavs should, at the very least, be keeping an eye on what happens with the Toronto Raptors over the next few months. Either of Pascal Siakam or O.G. Anunoby would be an excellent fit in this current Dallas roster, and both could potentially be unrestricted free agents this summer as well, which could hinder their trade value. The Raptors are a middle-of-the-pack team in the East at 5-6, and they might have to hit the reset button this season.
As good as the Mavs have been so far this season, they still might be one solid wing player away from being a true title contender. Ending up with a starting lineup of Doncic, Irving, Anunoby-or-Siakam, Grant Williams and Dereck Lively II? Yeah, that might just do it.
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