Dallas Mavericks: Raymond Felton Should Not Be Traded

Raymond Felton has elevated his game for the Dallas Mavericks this season, but he should be kept out of trade talks.

Expectations were low for Raymond Felton before the 2015-16 NBA season began. He was coming off of a career-worst season where he averaged just 3.7 points, 0.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game after only 29 games.

He continued to work against his history of lingering injuries and fans were particularly not happy with the fact that he picked up his player option ($3.9 million) in the summer.

However, during the offseason, Felton got to work and showed up to training camp looking slimmer. He looked to be in much better physical shape and he entered the season looking ready for a role as one of the Mavs’ many guards coming off of the bench.

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To start off, he made an immediate impact. In the Mavs’ first regular-season game, Felton scored 18 points while adding four rebounds and six assists. In the process, he played a team-high 33 minutes, which was seven more than the next player.

As the season has rolled on, Felton has become a reliable bench option, even though he has started 20 games so far. He has bumped his averages up to 9.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. He even dropped a triple-double against the Washington Wizards back in December.

Two of his best games have come on nights when the Mavs were not expecting to win. With a 23-point outing against the Houston Rockets and a 22-point outing against the New Orleans Pelicans, Felton is often one of the best players on the court when Rick Carlisle opts to rest a few of his starters.

By taking all of this into account, you may be wondering why the Mavs would want to trade Felton. The answer is simple: the player option he picked up means he will be a free agent this summer, plus, his increased production is something that every championship contender is in the market for.

The Mavs were not going to re-sign Felton last summer and if they had offered him a deal, it would’ve most likely been too small for him. That seems like it would be the case in this summer too, as the Mavs continue to try to get younger with Dirk Nowitzki‘s final seasons upon us.

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Even with the incentive to pull the trigger on a trade at the deadline, the Mavs need to go ahead and hold on to Felton for the remainder of the season because he has been way too important for them so far.

Out of the Mavs’ three backup point guards (including Devin Harris and J.J. Barea), Felton is playing more minutes and he has a knack for hitting late free throws when the opposition is playing the foul game.

Besides that, Felton is often seen closing out games with Deron Williams and he is great at driving the lane and drawing fouls with his hard-nosed style of play. His chemistry with the rest of the team sets him apart and has made him look like a much more important piece than he was just a year ago.

By choosing to trade Felton, the Mavs could the risk losing a player who acts as the glue in tough situations. As they’ve seen with Rajon Rondo, what looks like a good trade can turn into a situation full of backfire.

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Though it may seem like an idea that could work for the Mavs, they need keep Felton around and avoid trading him at the deadline. His improved play for 2015-16 is too valuable for a team that will be right in the middle of things come playoff time.