NBA trade season has officially kicked off with Shams Charania announcing that the Dallas Mavericks have agreed to trade their 26th overall pick, Boban Marjanovic, Trey Burke, and Sterling Brown for disgruntled Houston Rockets star Christian Wood.
Wood averaged 17.9 points and 10.1 rebounds a game last season as the Rockets had a less than impressive season, finishing in the lottery. However, the Mavericks have managed to trade a lot of their out-of-rotation players and a late-first-round pick from this season into an extremely useful rotation player in Wood.
There are a lot of question marks around the trade, especially with whether Wood’s defense will plug the glaring holes the Mavs had in the Playoffs. Wood definitely allows the Mavs to be bigger on the court while maintaining a fast offensive pace like the one Jason Kidd has made the team familiar with playing. He is also a solid rebounder, which will be crucial for this Mavs team that relies on their point guard to be their best rebounder.
Sources: The Mavericks are sending Boban Marjanovic, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, Marquese Chriss and the No. 26 pick to the Rockets for Christian Wood. https://t.co/fbxxAL7OGu
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 16, 2022
Dallas is making a win-now move by trading for Wood. Whether it actually works out is another question. Wood’s contract is nearing expiry, so the Mavs are not committed long-term to him like they are currently committed to players like Davis Bertans.
Christian Wood hasn’t played on a competitive team in his career, spending all his seasons with lottery teams like the Detroit Pistons and the Houston Rockets. All perceived ‘attitude issues’ with him can be brought under control in this Mavericks system as this is the first time he has had a genuine chance at playing on a playoff-level team.
The Rockets are doubling down on their young team as Wood cannot fit with the timeline of younger players. However, his age is perfect for the Mavericks who are looking to continue their form after a Western Conference Finals appearance this season.
