Dallas Mavericks: Future Depends On Wesley Matthews, Chandler Parsons

The Dallas Mavericks have an unclear future ahead of them and that’s why they will need to rely on Wesley Matthews and Chandler Parsons.

The end of Dirk Nowitzki‘s Hall of Fame career is rapidly approaching. Before the 2015-16 season started, Nowitzki spoke on the issue of retirement and said that he wants “to play two more years under contract” in Dallas.

That would mean finishing up this season and playing through the 2016-17 season, however he could possibly take it one year at a time after that and play past the last year of his contract.

There certainly isn’t much that Nowitzki hasn’t accomplished in the sport. He won the MVP award in 2007 and a championship in 2011. He is also sixth on the all-time NBA scoring list and he owns basically every offensive category for the Mavs from field goals made to rebounds collected.

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Once he retires, the Mavs are going to have a huge hole in their roster. Since Nowitzki was drafted in 1998, he has been the focal point on offense and the leader on and off the court for the Mavs, plus, he has been their go-to guy in just about every late-game situation.

So, what are the Mavs going to do when life after Dirk Nowitzki finally begins?

The first option, and the most obvious one, is picking up a free agent who can sustain the load and carry the franchise. However, as we’ve seen in the past few summers with Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony and DeAndre Jordan, the Mavs have not been able to successfully lure in the “big fish.”

If they did finally capture a prized free agent, they would have to make sure they have a structured team around him to ensure no drop off post-Nowitzki.

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With that being a factor in the future, the Mavs are going to have to take care of their young wings in Wesley Matthews and Chandler Parsons.

Parsons was signed to a three-year, $46 million deal during the summer of 2014. He was a restricted free agent for the Houston Rockets and after he signed an offer sheet with the Mavs, the Rockets decided that the contract was too big and ultimately passed, sending Parsons to Dallas.

In his first year with the team. He became a reliable offensive option, averaging 15.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 38 percent from the three-point line. His season came to an end during the 2014-15 playoffs when a lingering knee issue became too severe, leading to arthroscopic surgery.

In March, Matthews tore his Achilles and many questions arose as to how he would respond, since many NBA players, such as Kobe Bryant and Isiah Thomas, saw either declined production or retirement due to the injury.

Matthews had originally agreed to a four-year, $57 million deal with the Mavs, but once the Jordan saga unfolded, the team raised the total to $70 million, giving him a max contract.

Widely known as one of the toughest players in the league, Matthews made an effort to come back sooner than expected and that’s why he was out on the court opening night against the Phoenix Suns. So far this season, he has been averaging 13.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.7 assists while shooting 38 percent from three.

Together, Parsons and Matthews make up one of the most intriguing pairs in the NBA. They aren’t new to the show so they have experience but they aren’t seasoned veterans and are most likely operating in the prime of their careers at age 27 and 29, respectively.

They were both limited at the beginning of this season due to their offseason surgeries. Parsons missed the first two games of the year and did not hit the 20-minute mark in a game until Nov. 16. Matthews started the season, as I mentioned above, but was not allowed to play back-to-backs for the first month,

Their future with the Dallas Mavericks will be critical to the team’s success. After this season, Parsons will have one more year in his contract, although I expect him to be back after that, and Matthews will have three more years.

Throughout those seasons, the Mavs will be undergoing a very interesting transitional period in which Parsons and Matthews, the team’s youngest starters right now, will most likely be the anchors on offense and defense.

The scary thing about that is the fact that they are both coming off of major injuries. The duo looks to be close to 100 percent, but major injuries open up the door for more injuries in the future, as we saw with Derrick Rose from 2011-14.

One encouraging factor in this process is the fact that both Parsons and Matthews rest in the hands of a wonderful training staff in Dallas, led by head athletic trainer Casey Smith. They will be key in making sure both players stay healthy so they can enjoy the prime playing periods of their careers.

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Unless the Mavs attract a free agent capable of putting up 20-plus points per game, the duo will be the primary scoring machine for a team looking for a new identity.

Overall, there will be plenty of options to look over and tons of decisions to make once Nowitzki has retired, but Matthews and Parsons are going to be most important to finding success in the next era of Dallas Mavericks basketball.