Dallas Mavericks: Larry Sanders Could Be A Future Addition

Back in February, stories broke about the Dallas Mavericks’ interest in Larry Sanders. At the time, the Mavs had just lost out on Jermaine O’Neal and were still looking for a legitimate backup center to help Tyson Chandler.

Sanders, who had been struggling with many personal issues, ultimately decided that it was best for him to stay away from the NBA after he agreed to a buyout with the Milwaukee Bucks.

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However, reports recently spread on Twitter about Sanders and a Western Conference team possibly having mutual interest. The team remained unnamed throughout the day but many believed that two possible teams were the Los Angeles Lakers and the Mavs.

Report: Western Conference team considering signing Larry Sanders http://t.co/P6gaGbjNj7
— Kurt Helin (@basketballtalk) October 12, 2015

Sanders added to all of the drama later on in the day when one of his tweets suggested that he could’ve been meeting with a team in Texas, but later that idea was shot down.

Eventually, rumors on the Mavs side of the Internet stopped flowing after Tim MacMahon of ESPN tweeted that the Mavs and Sanders were not currently engaged in talks but that the Mavs would definitely be interested if something happened and the center became available.

Multiple Mavs sources say they have nothing brewing with Larry Sanders. But they'd be in front of line if he wanted to play ball again.
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) October 13, 2015

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Looking past this short-lived situation, it’s obvious that this could break into something real during the 2015-16 season. The Mavs were already interested before and it seems as if they will stay interested.

They have an interesting center situation on their hands for the upcoming season. After missing out on DeAndre Jordan, they signed JaVale McGee and Samuel Dalembert while trading for Zaza Pachulia. None of these players are guaranteed a starting position, it will simply come down to whoever performs best in the preseason.

There is lots of uncertainty in the plan that they are using. Pachulia will be solid and should have a great year but the others might not be so lucky. Dalembert was waived by the Knicks in January, meaning that he hasn’t played organized basketball in roughly nine months.

McGee was waived by the 76ers in March and had some injury problems last season, which is why the Mavs have been taking it slow with him.

The situation could turn out great if both of them are able to get back on their feet again, but if they struggle, the Mavs could be in trouble, with only one other true center on their roster. That’s where the risk of signing Sanders could come into play. It seems like he could return to the league this season and the Mavs could be a big-time candidate for his services.

They won’t have any issues fitting him in with the team like they would have last season when they had Monta Ellis, who apparently was not fond of Sanders. He will turn 27 in November and has shown excellent skills on both sides of the court which could end up being huge for a Mavs team that has always struggled to find an above-average center.

Though nothing between the sides is going to happen anytime soon, keep an eye on the situation, because the Mavs and Sanders could be potential matches in 2015-16.

Next: Injuries Could Be An Early Issue For The Mavs

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