NBA Free Agency: Dallas Mavericks Reach Out to Andre Iguodala, Chase Budinger, Kevin Martin
By Josh Hill
Everyone expects the Dallas Mavericks to be very aggressive in their pursuit of free agent center Dwight Howard but people tend to forget that the team has other needs to fill and have the money to go after other top free agents as contingency plans should they fail to secure a deal with Howard. As it stands now, it would appear the Houston is the prime landing spot for Howard which means the Dallas Mavericks are ready to reach out to other top targets.
According to a report from ESPN, that’s exactly what Dallas has done as the team has reportedly reached out to free agents Andre Iguodala, Kevin Martin and Chase Budinger.
"The Mavs were also reportedly among several teams to reach out to small forwards Andre Iguodala and Chase Budinger and shooting guard Kevin Martin. One team source considers Iguodala to be the third-best player in this free agency crop, behind only Howard and Chris Paul, who has already committed to re-sign with the Clippers."
It should come as no surprise that the Mavericks are looking at options other than Dwight Howard as their chances for landing him have never been overwhelmingly high. Don’t mistake that with them having a poor chance, but rather Mark Cuban is simply being realistic about the team’s needs and isn’t afraid to look in other areas.
And who knows, maybe showing an interest in other free agents will cause Howard to give the Mavericks more attention, but at the very least Dallas has plans in place incase they don’t land Howard, meaning their all-in gamble can still pay off in other areas.