How Mavs Could Pair Celtics’ Jaylen Brown with Luka Doncic & Kyrie Irving Via Blockbuster Trade
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It’s no secret that the Dallas Mavericks need major changes to their roster this summer in order to become a playoff contender again, let alone a championship contender. Despite a career year from Luka Doncic and a mid-season blockbuster trade for star guard Kyrie Irving, a combination of unfortunate health and lack of depth has the Mavs sitting at home during the NBA playoffs and hoping for a miracle next week when the draft lottery gets underway on May 16.
Dallas has several needs, and it’s unlikely that all of them can be addressed in just one offseason, but among those needs are better perimeter defense and scoring from the wing position. Mavs GM Nico Harrison has proven that he’s not afraid to pull off surprising blockbuster trades over the last two years, and pushing for a deal with the Boston Celtics for Jaylen Brown this summer could help get things back on track for a team that was in the Western Conference Finals just a year ago.
Despite the Celtics being pushed to the brink of elimination by the Philadelphia 76ers in the second round, the play of Brown has been commendable, as he’s averaged 25.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists through 11 playoff games while shooting 55.3 percent from the field and 47.5 percent from deep. A trio of Doncic, Irving and Brown could do a lot of damage in a Western Conference that currently has more parity than it ever has before.
When considering this particular trade idea, some might bring up how Brown and Irving didn’t exactly mesh well together when they were teammates on the Celtics from 2017-19. However, that relationship has grown since Irving left Boston, and it might be time to give that on-court pairing another try – this time, though, with Doncic in the mix.
“It’s been a lot of growth and interesting to follow,” Brown said of his relationship with Irving in December after the Celtics beat the Nets. “Being a teammate of Kyrie, we got into it a lot. We didn’t see eye-to-eye the majority of the time he was here. And since then, it seems like our relationship [has improved]. We’ve been able to have conversations. We’ve been able to talk to each other. We’ve been able to understand where he’s coming from.”
Based on Irving’s quotes after that same game, the feeling his former teammate shared is mutual.
“He’s a brother of mine. I’m grateful that we’ve built a relationship off the court,” said Irving when speaking of Brown. “When I was in Boston, we didn’t get a chance to know each other on a deeper level. Again, I’m just grateful we’ve been able to build on a top of a great foundation of aligning on how we live our lives and treat people. He’s a brother of mine.”
A year after making it to the NBA Finals, the Celtics are on the verge of being ousted in the second round. And with Brown only having one more year remaining on his contract — and also having shown signs of discontent at times — it might be time for Boston to move on before it gets to a point where he could leave for nothing after next season.
Assuming the Celtics would be open to trading Brown regardless of where the Mavs’ pick lands, here’s a trade scenario that comes to mind.
Mavs receive: Jaylen Brown
Celtics receive: Tim Hardaway Jr., Reggie Bullock, Josh Green, 2023 first-round pick (traded after selection is made), 2027 unprotected first-round pick
The Mavs have nearly an 80-percent chance of keeping their pick in next week’s lottery drawing and nearly a 14-percent chance of jumping into the top-four picks.
Would a trade package involving the No. 10 pick in this year’s draft, as well as the Mavs’ 2027 first-round pick be enough to pry Brown away from the Celtics? It depends on Boston’s preferences, but if we had to speculate, we’d think this year’s pick would need to be in the top-four to give the Mavs a real chance. After all, there are many opposing teams that can outbid Dallas when it comes to first-round picks.
Follow Dalton Trigg on Twitter @dalton_trigg.
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