Andre Drummond would have been a great fit for the Mavs … last decade. These days, the Pistons’ rebound hog is too slow, too ineffective on defense and too expensive, in particular.
Which is why Mark Cuban and Donnie Nelson hit up the Warriors for 7-foot Willie Cauley-Stein, sort of a Dwight Powell starter kit, reportedly at the price of a second-round pick.
Bottom line: The Mavs didn’t compromise their promising future by trading a first-rounder and blowing up their salary structure on a bad fit.
Even better, the move restores their flexibility to make a bigger deal before the trade deadline.
Any team forced into making a move to fill a pressing need sacrifices its leverage in the process. That’s never a good idea. Now the Mavs can find someone to shore up Rick Carlisle’s roster going into what should be a hunt for the playoffs.
Of course, determining exactly what they need or can afford is the big question, no?
Do they think Kristaps Porzingis is ready to resume the climb to what he was in New York? Given the layoff and Porzingis’ recent knee problems, I don’t know why you’d think so. Just the same, the Mavs miss him when he’s gone. No matter what you think of his offense, Porzingis is a good rebounder and a fairly spectacular presence around the rim. What he doesn’t block, he redirects. No one else on the Mavs’ bench fills in adequately.
Anyone outside the organization who can do those things probably isn’t available at a price the Mavs would pay. So do they target another scorer instead? Scouts reportedly think the Mavs needed a true No. 2 even before Porzingis got hurt.
Questions still need to be answered, but after Friday’s deal, at least one isn’t as pressing anymore.
Cauley-Stein, 26, is just about as good defensively as Powell and, with an All-Star point guard feeding him at the rim, maybe he can rise to Powell’s level on offense. Even if he doesn’t, it didn’t cost much to take a look.
