The Mavericks have it good with two very competent centers in the frontcourt to boast: Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II.
You just know they can hold the fort down regardless of which big takes the court, but unfortunately, the untimely injury bug has put a damper on this two-headed Dallas monster.
Their young breakout center, Dereck Lively II, has suffered a stress fracture in his right ankle and is expected to miss significant time, according to ESPN Senior NBA Insider Shams Charania.
Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II has sustained a small fracture in his foot and is expected to miss 2-to-3 months, sources tell ESPN. Critical loss for the Mavs. pic.twitter.com/XJje4eZQsY
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) January 22, 2025
Shams is definitely right to call it a "critical loss" for the Mavs, seeing how impactful having Lively was last year during the 2024 NBA Finals run for Dallas. Injuries already plagued his rookie season, and now his sophomore year isn't any more favorable.
So, how can the Dallas Mavericks make up for their massive loss to frontcourt depth? A trade, perhaps? And how about calling up the Toronto Raptors for that?
As it currently stands, the Mavericks' roster construction has two center reserves they could look to implement in the rotation: Maxi Kleber and Dwight Powell. But I don't know too many people trying to see extended minutes of Kleber and Powell hoops. They might have been solid at one point, but at this stage in their careers, a team like Dallas making another push toward title contention can't rely on either man for a consistent role.
Here's where the Raptors can swoop in and lend a helping hand to Dallas.
Toronto has two veterans they could look to explore trades for in the market this trade deadline: two Canadians in Kelly Olynyk and Chris Boucher.
Mavericks could look to Raptors for one of their big man trade candidates
Now, the allure of adding Olynyk or Boucher isn't necessarily about getting any younger in terms of frontcourt talent, but skillset-wise, either big could definitely give the Mavericks a much-needed boost in that department.
Recent intel has suggested Boucher's interest in working out a contract extension to remain with the Toronto Raptors, but nothing is for sure in the zany NBA rumor mill. The signs of Olynyk's availability on Toronto's trade block continue to ramp up, and it has been suggested previously of mutual interest in the 33-year-old from several contenders, like the Golden State Warriors.
With that being said, what would it take for Dallas to get a hypothetical deal sorted out here?
Kleber's $11 million salary on a two-year length would likely be the main financial asset involved, as it matches up near perfectly with Boucher's one-year, $10.8 million contract and Olynyk's two-year, $12.8 million annual salary.
Dallas would need to spice things up in the deal by including some second-round draft capital, perhaps, or entice the Raptors with one of their younger pieces, like, say, Quentin Grimes or Montreal-native Olivier Maxence-Prosper.
The good thing for either Olynyk or Boucher is that they could fit in seamlessly into the Mavericks' game plan, but it would be up to Dallas' front office on who's more desirable.
Neither man is quite the prototypical big-bodied center, but hey, that's where Daniel Gafford serves his role. Bringing in Olynyk and Boucher, you get bigs who can stretch the floor, and in Olynyk's case, he has some playmaking skills to his game too. If Dallas hits big, they'll get a torching flamethrower like Boucher has exemplified on his best nights, as he's shown to be very volatile this season.
There might be some other candidates out there on the rumored trade block that are bigger center upgrades, like Jonas Valanciunas or Nikola Vucevic, but if Dallas just wants to recoup for the short term, then Olynyk or Boucher are cheaper and smarter options.