Rumors recently dropped that Daniel Gafford was seeking starting center level money for his next contract. Despite still having a year left on his current deal, speculation immediately began that Gafford would soon be on his way out of Dallas as a result of both that desire and the growing glut of frontcourt depth in Big D. Gafford has since squashed the salary-related rumors, yet talk of him being on the move has persisted. The Mavericks are not in the friendliest of spots relative to the salary cap, and Gafford could certainly fetch valuable assets such as picks and/or more favorable salaries that could make it easier to navigate the Offseason.

A logical landing spot for Gafford would be none other than the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom the Mavericks swung a separate deal you may be familiar with, back in early February. LA has an almost desperate need for a center, and the chemistry Luka Doncic has with Gafford is tried and true at this point. There is no question about the fit, but there are a few roadblocks in the way of LA getting another trade done with Dallas.

Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times recently reported on some interesting factors that could play into LA and Dallas meeting at the trade table once again. He confirmed LA’s obvious need for a center, stating “the Lakers’ scouts and executives… have openly spoke about the team’s needs at the center position — an obvious priority for [GM Rob] Pelinka and [head coach J.J.] Redick.” That, of course, is the obvious portion of an equation that quickly gets more complicated, as he continues “the team has shown no interest in using [Austin] Reaves in a trade that nets them anything less than a top-tier big… with the two most common names linked to them in the earliest stages of the offseason – Brooklyn’s Nic Claxton and Dallas’ Daniel Gafford. According to rival scouts and executives, the Lakers best assets (minus Reaves) are their 2031 first-round pick, second year wing Dalton Knecht and a bunch of expiring contracts. Some combination of them would be a must in any deal the team would make for a center.”

Dallas could certainly benefit from some backcourt help in the form of Reaves (and Knecht). Kyrie Irving is out until at least January and Klay Thompson, while still effective, is not getting younger. There is, however, the issue of optics. Woike continues “the trouble, of course, is that people around the NBA wonder how it would look if Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison engaged Pelinka and the Lakers on another trade after the last deal between the teams was so unpopular that it caused protests.”

Harrison has demonstrated a thick skin when it comes to enduring relentless criticism since the Doncic trade, so he may not hesitate to re-engage the Lakers on another deal, but there are various reasons he shouldn’t.

The Mavs theoretically had a chance to get Reaves when they traded Doncic

We will never know what Rob Pelinka’s line in the sand was when it came to the Doncic trade. He may simply have marked Reaves as untouchable. An outright non-starter. Whatever the case, it’s not a stretch to think Harrison could have gotten more for a unicorn-level generational talent. What the nuances of that trade would have looked like are anyone’s guess, but failing to get Reaves when giving up one of the biggest assets in the league, only to then have to give up more assets later to get Reaves, makes the Mavs look like losers of consecutive trades to the same team. It is most assuredly not the PR move Dallas needs.

Knecht and the 2031 first round pick

Once again, needing to swing a second deal to get these assets leaves the Mavs looking foolish for not being able to net them during the first go-round. Perhaps worse still is that Knecht was clearly available in February, having been traded for Mark Williams in the move that wasn’t, coming right back to LA after Williams failed his physical. The pick too is a major sticking point for Dallas fans. It seems the pick should have been a requisite inclusion in the Doncic trade. While some may think Dallas fans are delusional, one only has to see the past wheelings-and-dealings of Danny Ainge to believe other GMs could have gotten that pick (and then some) included. To give up more assets for it now is a tough pill to swallow.

The Mavs simply can’t help a West foe any more than they already have

Moving past the potential for criticism and finger pointing, a Gafford-for-Reaves swap is arguably just not smart. While Reaves is a legitimate talent, the Lakers arguably need a player like Gafford more than they do Reaves. With Doncic and LeBron James (for at least a little while longer, we suspect) manning the backcourt, delivering Gafford to LA immediately helps a Western Conference foe. After Doncic dropped 45 points in his return to Dallas, its safe to expect he will remain motivated against his former team going forward. Handing a potential Playoff opponent a dangerous lob threat and defensive anchor, satisfying their biggest need, just isn’t a smart thing to do. There are 28 other teams to speak with of Dallas is determined to move Gafford.

Gafford is valuable to the Mavericks

Gafford has somehow become expendable in the eyes of some. With the pending addition of Cooper Flagg, it’s true the Mavericks have a lot of depth in the frontcourt. P.J. Washington may be on the move to help alleviate that, but regardless, the Mavs’ depth specific to the center position isn’t exactly overflowing. Anthony Davis prefers to play the PF spot, and if either Dereck Lively or Gafford suffer an injury, it propels Dwight Powell up the depth chart. Gafford and Lively are a legitimate two-headed monster, and while they may not be a pair long term, it feels premature to break up that tandem now. It will not take much to quickly look very thin at the center position if either of the two are injured or elsewhere. While the Mavs cobbled together a center rotation with the likes of Kai Jones and Kessler Edwards last season, that is far from ideal. If defense truly wins championships as Harrison declared, the Mavs’ front office had better get the better end of any deal involving Gafford.

Gafford remains a valuable asset to what Dallas is trying to achieve, while certainly carrying a lot of appeal to other teams around the league. The Mavs do have some cap issues to contend with, and Gafford may be a trade piece with his expiring contract, but LA should not be his landing spot.

I invite you to follow me @_80MPH on X, and check back often at Mavs Moneyball for all the latest on the Dallas Mavericks