Dallas Mavericks: Analyzing Upcoming Free Agents

The Dallas Mavericks will have some big decisions to make on unrestricted free agents this summer. Take a look at who they should and shouldn’t re-sign.

The Dallas Mavericks have used free agency to rebuild their roster for each of the past five offseasons. Whether they have been tossing out short-term deals or attempting to sign superstar players, the team has preferred free agency over the draft.

This summer will be no different. With the 46th overall pick serving as their only selection, they will have to rely heavily on the free agent market again.

But maybe they play things differently this season. Maybe they focus more on re-signing talent from 2015-16 and bringing back the same core, rather than bringing in a new wave of players.

While only four players are officially set to hit the market, others like Deron Williams, Chandler Parsons and Dirk Nowitzki could end up opting out of their contracts.

Let’s run through each unrestricted free agent for the Mavs and break down their impact on the team.

Raymond Felton

2015-16 stats: 9.5 PPG/3.6 APG/3.2 RPG

Raymond Felton is arguably the most important unrestricted free agent for the Mavs this summer. He had the opportunity to start 31 regular-season games and four of five playoff games this season.

Felton made improvements to just about every aspect of his game. He had increases in points, rebounds and assists to go along with a higher fee throw percentage, but a lot of his improvement came in the form of skills not seen on the stat sheet.

Felton looked much better physically, whether it was his solid defense or his ability to drive the lane, and matched some of his performances from his days with the New York Knicks.

It didn’t matter if Felton was starting or coming off the bench, he was a reliable player night in and night out. He even managed to drop a triple-double (10/11/11) on Dec. 12 against the Washington Wizards.

His 15.0 points per game in the playoffs helped the Mavs stay within striking distance at times, and his 21 points in Game 2 helped them score their only playoff win.

So should the Mavs make an effort to re-sign Felton this summer? Yes, and here’s why:

You could make the case that Felton was the best Mavs point guard last season. He played 80 of 82 regular-season games and could play a combination of point guard and shooting guard, giving him the ability to play with Deron Williams.

With his versatility and tendency to make big-time plays in big-time moments, he could be a contender for Sixth Man of the Year should he come back to Dallas. Felton is the one pending free agent that the team needs to go out of their way to re-sign.

David Lee

2015-16 stats: 8.5 PPG/7.0 RPG/1.2 APG

David Lee was a mid-season acquisition for the Mavs. After being bought out by the Boston Celtics, Lee signed for the $2.1 million cap-room exception.

He only played 27 games with the Mavs and ended up being one of the many players to fall to injury in the playoffs, but Lee played a big role on both ends of the floor.

With the highest PER on the team (24.1), Lee provided steady rebounding along with key physical defense in the paint. He was great at snagging boards and operating under the basket.

Lee ended the season with four doubles-doubles as a Mav, his most impressive coming on March 6, when he had 18 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and four blocks to go along with 7-for-9 shooting.

At 33 years old, Lee is still capable of putting up big numbers and while he isn’t the same player as he was with Golden State and New York, his veteran play and championship experience proved to be helpful for the Mavs.

With the possibility of a new center looming, the Mavs will most likely be signing at least one player to a rather large contract. Lee is a great bench player and an excellent backup for Dirk Nowitzki. If the price is right, they should definitely make an attempt to re-sign him.

Zaza Pachulia

2015-16 stats: 8.6 PPG/9.4 RPG/1.7 APG

Zaza Pachulia was not the center the Mavs planned on having on opening night last season. After DeAndre Jordan decided Dallas wasn’t the place for him, the Mavs pulled a quick trade for Pachulia.

The best part of his game was his physical nature in the paint. He never backed down from any challenge he had and provided tough, gritty offense and defense every time he was on the court.

Early on, he looked like a steal, as he had recorded 17 double-doubles by the time January rolled around.

While his play was still solid throughout the next two months of the season, he began to level off, and by the time the Mavs reached March, Pachulia simply wasn’t the same player he had been at the beginning of the season.

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It was about that time that Salah Mejri entered the equation and began to take away some of Pachulia’s minutes.

To sum things up, it wouldn’t make much sense for the Mavs to bring Pachulia back unless they strike out on free agents again or want to have a solid three-man center rotation.

Al Horford, Hassan Whiteside, Al Jefferson, Joakim Noah and Dwight Howard are among the names set to become unrestricted free agents.

Mejri will likely get more time next season as a backup and the team should be able to sign at least one of the five options above. With that in mind, Pachulia’s time in Dallas could be over.

Charlie Villanueva

2015-16 stats: 5.1 PPG/2.5 RPG/0.4 APG

Charlie Villanueva has spent his last two seasons in Dallas, playing a total of 126 games.

He certainly isn’t a game-changing player, but one of Villanueva’s best skills is his ability to shoot the three-pointer. You wouldn’t think that by seeing that he just shot 27 percent from three this season, but he likes to live beyond the arc when he’s in the game.

Villanueva was one of Dirk Nowitzki’s only backups last season and he made a slight adjustment to his game, becoming more efficient with an occasional floater in the lane.

He’s not a player that the Mavs will go out of their way to re-sign, but he’s always a potential bench option and one that could be signed for a cheap price.

must read: Building The Ultimate Dallas Mavericks Roster

With a pivotal summer rapidly approaching, the Mavs should consider re-signing a few of their depth options from last season.

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Dallas Mavericks: Analyzing Upcoming Unrestricted Free Agents

By Cole Mentzel | Jun 20, 2016