The Dallas Mavericks entered the NBA offseason with the understanding that an upgrade at the center position. They wasted no time in doing so by agreeing to a trade with the Houston Rockets to acquire Christian Wood.
In exchange for Wood, the Mavericks will send the Rockets the 26th overall pick along with Boban Marjanovic, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, and Marquese Chriss.
Due to Dallas owing the New York Knicks their 2023 first-round pick, the trade will be unable to be finalized until after the 26th pick is made on draft night to satisfy the Stepien rule.
Wood is coming off a 2021-22 season with averages of 17.9 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 2.3 assists. He shot 50.1 percent from the floor and 39.0 percent from beyond the arc. He spent two seasons with the Rockets after signing with the team in 2020, leading to a breakout season in 2020-21.
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The Rockets made this trade with the intention of clearing playing time for Alperen Sengun, who was selected 16th overall in the 2021 NBA Draft. He averaged 9.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in his rookie campaign while averaging 20.7 minutes per game.
While the trade compensation the Rockets received may appear low on the surface, it’s important to take his behavioral concerns into account. He was suspended one game earlier in the season for his poor handling of being benched for missing the mandatory Covid-19 testing window, resulting in a one-game suspension after refusing to check into the game.
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The Dallas Mavericks will hope the value of their strong team culture will result in buy-in from Christian Wood. As for the Houston Rockets, they will embrace Alperen Sengun as their center and the frontcourt player they are projected to take 3rd overall in the 2022 NBA Draft.
