​LAS VEGAS — Masai Ujiri and Mike Schmitz have carefully reshaped the Dallas Mavericks’ roster margins through the NBA draft and a flurry of trades, marking an active offseason for the team’s front office. The core trio of Cooper Flagg, Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II remains intact after a hectic week that officially began when free agency opened and the moratorium ended. On Tuesday, Dallas participated in a large, intricate six-team trade that sent Khris Middleton back to the Washington Wizards along with a 2033 second-round pick as part of a sign-and-trade agreement worth three years and $17.6 million.
In another move, the Mavericks sent AJ Johnson, a top-20 protected 2030 first-round pick via Golden State, and a 2029 second-round pick via Houston to the Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for Santi Aldama and the draft rights to Tarik Biberovic. Dallas also boosted its guard depth by trading with the Detroit Pistons for fourth-year guard Marcus Sasser. The ensemble of deals also involved the Los Angeles Clippers and the Milwaukee Bucks and is tied to what would become the second-largest trade in NBA history, a reflection of the bold, multi-team deals the Mavericks have pursued in recent years, including last season’s seven-team trade that enabled Houston to land Kevin Durant.
On the surface, the moves appear to strengthen Dallas in multiple areas: a 7-foot-1 forward/center who can stretch the floor provides more spacing for shooters, Sasser offers a dynamic scoring presence off the bench who could thrive in his hometown, and Biberovic gives the Mavericks a teenage prospect with significant shooting potential after netting 39.9% from three-point range across 36 EuroLeague games.
The strategic upside for Dallas lies in the front office’s willingness to maneuver creatively. Andrew Baker, the team’s vice president of basketball strategy and analytics, figures prominently in the plan. It had been initially thought that Aldama’s $17 million contract would be absorbed by Dallas’ $20.8 million trade exception created by the Anthony Davis deal. However, Middleton’s sign-and-trade preserves the trade exception, allowing Ujiri and Schmitz to consider utilizing it if they pursue another high-salary addition.
Sasser’s $5.1 million salary will likely be accommodated within Dallas’ biannual exception of $5.4 million, enabling the team to retain a key free-agent tool—the non-taxpayer midlevel exception worth $15 million. That grant would enable the Mavericks to sign Biberovic, who is anticipated to make the jump to the NBA next season after eight seasons in professional basketball with Fenerbahce in Turkey.
The front office’s strategy represents a calculated, multi-faceted effort to improve the Mavericks’ ceiling while maintaining flexibility for future moves. By adding Aldama’s floor-spacing presence and Biberovic’s shooting upside, alongside Sasser’s scoring punch and the veteran depth of Middleton’s sign-and-trade, Dallas positions itself to compete with a strengthened wing and guard rotation, a more versatile frontcourt, and an expanded array of shooting threats. The next steps for Ujiri, Schmitz, and their analytics team will involve maximizing the use of trade exceptions and midlevel tools to fine-tune the roster balance, remaining mindful of luxury-tax implications, and continuing to explore opportunities that keep the Mavericks competitive in a high-stakes Western Conference.