The Dallas Mavericks‘ backcourt is thin after Jalen Brunson‘s departure to the New York Knicks. Luka Doncic is the star and an MVP candidate. Spencer Dinwiddie, however, is now vaulted into the starting five. This leaves the Dallas bench options at point guard as Frank Ntilikina and rookie Jaden Hardy. Although the Mavericks can help replace Brunson’s scoring with the early acquisition of Christian Wood, a reliable floor general for the second unit is still needed.
Dallas Mavericks Free Agency Point Guard Targets
An Offensive Option
Dennis Schroder remains a free agent. He’s a great target if the Mavericks are looking to add another scoring punch. Schroder spent last season with the Boston Celtics and Houston Rockets, but of course, was in Houston while Boston made their Finals run.
Before that, however, Schroder played very well for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder. He averaged about 15 points and six assists per game with the Lakers in 2020-21 and averaged about 19 points and four assists for the Thunder in 2019-20.
He’s only 28 years old, so Schroder is still in his prime. There may be concerns with inefficiency and the player wanting to take a bigger offensive load than what is asked, but he’s a talent nonetheless. A ball handler rotation of Doncic, Dinwiddie, and Schroder is realistically as good as it gets.
A Defensive Option
Perhaps the Mavericks want to look towards the defense. They already have two stellar defensive players in Dorian Finney-Smith and Reggie Bullock. The team’s defense is what made a true difference last season, so it wouldn’t come as a surprise to see the Mavericks continue to push forward with that.
This leaves Elfrid Payton as an option. The name doesn’t necessarily spark excitement, but the 28-year-old has been a solid contributor throughout his career. He rarely played for the Phoenix Suns last season. The season prior, however, as a regular player he averaged about 10 points and three assists per game for the Knicks.
Before that, Payton regularly averaged over 10 points and six assists per game. He’s not an offensive flamethrower like Schroder, but Payton can play great defense and distribute the ball.
A Mix at Point Guard for the Dallas Mavericks
Finally, there’s one free agent that can supply a mixture of both offense and defense for the Mavericks. That is Eric Bledsoe. Although he was cut from the Portland Trail Blazers, Bledsoe remains a solid available option.
He’s 32 years old, so he’s likely looking to join a contender. In this case, the Mavericks make sense.
Last season he averaged about 10 points and four assists per game for the Los Angeles Clippers. In seasons prior, Bledsoe was a top contributor for the Milwaukee Bucks and Suns. Due to his time with the Bucks, Bledsoe also holds plenty of strong playoff experience.
He’s not a top shooter by any means. Bledsoe, however, is a steady veteran who can command the second unit, scoring by attacking the basket, and regularly play strong perimeter defense off the bench.
