FREE AGENCY
Key Free Agents: G Tim Hardaway Jr. (2020-21 salary – $18.9M), G Josh Richardson (Player Option for 2021-22 season- $11.6M), G J.J. Redick ($13M), C Boban Marjanović ($3.5M)
Other Free Agents: F Nicolò Melli ($4M), F Tyler Bey (Two-Way), G Nate Hinton (Two-Way)
Free agency is always a big time for the Dallas Mavericks as owner Mark Cuban is no stranger to wanting to pay his way to forming a championship-caliber team! The biggest question surrounding the Mavericks in free agency this year is whether or not they will be able to retain Tim Hardaway Jr., who is set to become an unrestricted free agent.
Dallas has loved the production they have received from THJ over the last couple of seasons and given the performances he had in the playoffs for them this year, it is expected that the Mavs will offer Hardaway Jr. a new contract worth around $20M per year.
READ MORE: NBA Rumors: The latest intel on a possible Kristaps Porzingis offseason trade
One league executive told NBA Analysis Network that he fully expects the Mavericks and Tim Hardaway Jr. to get a deal done in the offseason.
“From everything I have been told, Tim loves the Mavericks organization and the Dallas area. It almost seems like a done-deal that he will return.”
On top of figuring out Hardaway Jr. ‘s contract situation in free agency, the Mavericks will also need to figure out if they will be looking to re-sign J.J. Redick. The veteran sharpshooter just finished up his 15th season in the NBA and there were rumors at the trade deadline this year that he wanted to go to a team closer to home in the northeast, so Dallas may have traded for Redick for nothing.
The 36-year-old guard played in just 13 games for the Mavericks this season, averaging 4.4 points and shooting 39.5% from three-point range in about 11.3 minutes per game, his lowest numbers with a team since his first few seasons in the league.
READ MORE: NBA Rumors: This Celtics-Mavericks trade features Kemba Walker, Kristaps Porzingis
Another key contract situation to watch with the Mavericks is Jalen Brunson and the final year of his rookie contract for the 2021-22 season. Brunson’s $1.8M contract is non-guaranteed for next season and will become fully guaranteed on August 1, 2021. It is not a matter of whether or not the Mavs keep Brunson, but whether or not they look to sign him to a long-term extension prior to the start of the season.
Tim Hardaway Jr. is really the only free agent the Mavericks are locked in on right now, but if they somehow move Kristaps Porzingis ahead of free agency, they could have a large chunk of cap space to play around with. However, with the upcoming contract extensions of Luka Doncic, Dorian Finney-Smith and possibly even Jalen Brunson, Dallas could focus their attention on retaining their current core instead of going after other available players.
