Toronto Raptors: The wheel of potential Kyle Lowry destinations

The Dallas Mavericks

Luka Doncic has more trade value than anyone else in the league. That doesn’t mean he’s the best player in the world, but what he can do at his age makes him, and his future, the most valuable asset in the basketball world, and Dallas relishes that.

That said, the Mavericks have sort of worked themselves into a corner as far as Finals contention goes. Luka gives them a clear star that part is spoken for, but the rest is still being fleshed out and that’s on the head of the front office.

Kristaps Porzingis rarely plays and looks like a shell of himself when he does, Josh Richardson looks like a swing and a miss. They have no real young stars coming up besides Luka, and with a gifted, but seriously flawed supporting cast, the Mavericks are not going to be top contenders as they exist today.

The acquisition of Lowry would be a win-now move for sure. In the NBA we live in today, there is no guarantee you’ll have a young star forever. Young stars don’t sign 10-year contracts the way they used to, and if you think Luka will want to stay with a team that hasn’t been trying to maximize his efforts on the court then you’re crazy.

Dallas needs to trade for Kyle Lowry.

Lowry would provide all the same benefits we mentioned before. Secondary ball handling, spacing and shooting, grit, savvy, strong positional defense, and team leadership. The question remains for Dallas; “would that be enough to contend?”

Toronto could go the route of the usual amalgamation of picks and young assets as far as a return goes. Dallas has a few young pieces who get stuck behind their strong wing rotation.  I’m sure Josh Green and Tyrell Terry would rather get minutes on the Raptors than none in Dallas.

The only other wrinkle would be if the Cavs put Porzingis on the table.  I’m not even sure we’d want him.  He’s so flawed and so risky, but that talent will always be there to tempt teams.  Just something to keep in mind.