​Monday, July 6 marked the end of the NBA’s week-long free agency moratorium, a temporary hold on transactions that lets teams finalize deals under the salary cap rules before they are officially announced. Early in free agency, NBA insider Marc Stein of The Stein Line reported that the Dallas Mavericks were expected to trade for Detroit Pistons point guard Marcus Sasser. That anticipated move has now become reality, as ESPN confirms Dallas has acquired Sasser through a multi-team trade that involves five other clubs.
In the trade, former Mavericks forward and veteran free agent Khris Middleton, who will turn 35 next month, rejoined the Washington Wizards in a sign-and-trade. He returns to the team with which he began the 2025-26 season after agreeing to a new three-year, $17.6 million contract. Dallas will also send AJ Johnson to Milwaukee, along with a 2030 conditional first-round pick and a 2029 second-round pick to Memphis. In return, the Mavericks receive former Grizzlies stretch-big Santi Aldama and the draft rights to Bosnian sharpshooter Tarik Biberovic.
Middleton’s sign-and-trade creates a $5.6 million trade exception, which absorbs Sasser’s incoming salary. Importantly for Dallas, the move leaves the team with its full taxpayer midlevel exception worth over $20 million to use elsewhere in free agency. Sasser, 25, is returning to his hometown in Dallas after averaging 7.0 points per game on a 38 percent three-point shooting clip across three NBA seasons. The Red Oak native played college basketball at the University of Houston before being selected in the first round, and he has appeared in 166 NBA games. His rookie season (2023-24) saw a career-high 8.3 points in a personal-best 19 minutes per game. In Detroit, his minutes began to wane as the Pistons—led by DFW native Cade Cunningham—began to emerge as Eastern Conference contenders.
This trade marks the first free-agent addition to the Mavericks’ backcourt under team president Masai Ujiri. Kyrie Irving and Ryan Nembhard are set to return, and Sasser adds a promising scoring punch to a position that had left some fans uneasy after previous roster moves. Ujiri has also bolstered the frontcourt by adding No. 9 overall pick Morez Johnson Jr. and, with the acquisition of 7-foot veteran Santi Aldama, Dallas has increased its interior depth. The Mavericks still hold centers Daniel Gafford, Moussa Cisse, and Dereck Lively II, and they retain forwards P.J. Washington, Naji Marshall, Caleb Martin, and Cooper Flagg. Dwight Powell’s long run with Dallas has already seen him navigate coaching changes, ownership shifts, and significant roster turnover, but this offseason stands as perhaps the most challenging yet as the Mavericks reshape their roster around Cooper Flagg. Sasser’s arrival is anticipated to help address questions about the backcourt and provide a fresh scoring threat as Dallas looks to balance the lineup behind Kyrie Irving and Nembhard.