Dallas Mavericks: 5 ‘tough vets’ to pursue this upcoming free agency
By Dalton Sell
The Dallas Mavericks are reportedly in the market for some gritty veterans in free agency, and five of them in particular make perfect sense.
Following their 111-97 Game 6 defeat to the LA Clippers on Sunday, the Dallas Mavericks’ season concluded with plenty to celebrate moving forward. Luka Doncic was nothing short of amazing in his first postseason run being the biggest takeaway, but also the hard-fought effort as a unit against one of the most well-rounded teams in the NBA.
With their tremendous season now over, it appears that Dallas already has their eyes set on free agency, with a specific archetype in mind. Via Tim MacMahon of ESPN:
"“Richard Jefferson is absolutely right. The Mavs will look to add a tough vet or two this offseason. That’s been the plan and this series has reinforced the reasoning. ‘We need to get some dogs,’ one member of the front office told me months ago.” “It’s not just about having an enforcer for Luka Doncic. Mavs know they need to be much better than the 18th-ranked defense to have a good chance to win a championship.”"
Anyone that watched the Dallas-LA series in its entirety understands that targeting some defensive-minded, fearless veterans is undoubtedly the right move from a physicality standpoint. Between all of the flagrant fouls, ejections, technical fouls, and skirmishes in this series, the Mavericks could have used some lionhearted veterans when things went south.
As fate would have it, Marcus Morris Sr. will become a free agent this offseason, but after the bad blood boiled between him and the Mavericks in this series, do not expect him to make the cut on this list. Instead, here are five other tough veteran players that the Dallas Mavericks should pursue in free agency.