Christian Wood is one of the best remaining free agents on the market, with the Dallas Mavericks having no interest in bringing him back for next season.
Marc Stein revealed that the market for Wood has him in contention for only the veteran minimum, but the Mavericks will be willing to help him out by giving him a contract for sign-and-trade reasons.
“League sources say Dallas has not ruled out participating in a sign-and-trade deal that lands Christian Wood with a new team if it is presented with such a scenario. The issue for the Mavericks: They are already hard-capped and only $9 million and change away from hitting the NBA’s first luxury-tax apron, so it has been stressed to me that they would have to really like the player they receive in return to partake in such a deal.”
The Lakers have been heavily linked to Wood for a while now, but there aren’t any obvious trades that they can make with each other for Wood. Unless they’re willing to give up Jarred Vanderbilt or a new signing like Taurean Prince, a sign-and-trade may be hard to execute.
Should The Lakers Pursue Wood?
The Lakers should do everything possible to get Wood to agree on a two-year minimum with a player option, as it essentially gives Wood a no-trade clause for the first season. It allows him to play up his value with the comfort of knowing that he won’t be in a midseason trade, something that wasn’t the case with the Mavericks. Trading away anything of real value for Wood on a two-year, $14 million deal or something of the like wouldn’t be good business.
Wood averaged 16.6 points and 7.3 rebounds last season, but his numbers have been empty calories for his entire career. He hasn’t been able to stick with any franchise for a reason, so next season will be a full redemption season for the versatile big man, who may become one of the most talented players to be out of the league too early in his career.
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