NBA trade rumors: Christian Wood and other Mavs could be out with pursuits of new targets

The Dallas Mavericks might not be done making moves, and with that, Christian Wood and others could be on their way out.

The Dallas Mavericks made perhaps the move of trade season when they traded for Kyrie Irving just days after he formally requested a trade away from the Brooklyn Nets.

It’s a calculated risk, but one that Dallas is in a position to make because of Luka Doncic and their need to push as hard as they can for a title every season around the star guard. In a pure basketball view, swapping Spencer Dinwiddie as the Mavs’ No. 2 for Kyrie Irving is a massive upgrade to their starting lineup and overall team. Look beyond the court and you may have another perspective, but the ceiling for Dallas just got much higher.

They are currently 29-26 and sixth in the Western Conference.

Irving might not be the end of the moves made, though. There’s potential for Dallas to continue upgrading and looking for more moves to build around Doncic and Irving.

NBA rumors suggest Mavericks could be in pursuit of Deandre Ayton

According to Marc Stein in his recent newsletter (subscription required), Christian Wood was sequestered from the Irving deal in part because Dallas sees him as a possible piece to move moving forward.

According to Doc Louallen, who works on Digital Messaging for the NBA app, Dallas is interested in acquiring Deandre Ayton, and Wood plus Tim Hardaway Jr. have been involved in trade talks:

​​https://twitter.com/louallendoc/status/1623045120890220544

It’s a rumor that should be taken with a grain of salt since it hasn’t gotten confirmation from other reporters, but one that tracks at least partially with what Stein reported earlier this week on Wood being held out for possible further deals.

Ayton signed a four-year, $133 million extension with the Suns this offseason after it appeared he might be on his way out. There has been significant speculation about whether or not the Suns might trade him after he became trade eligible in mid-December.

He seems to be highly motivated by that speculation:

Ayton is averaging 18.0 points and 10.2 rebounds per game this year on 59.1 percent shooting from the 2-point zone and 30.4 percent from beyond the arc. Known in large part for his defense, he’s forcing opponents to shoot 1.4 percent worse from the field this year, and 4.0 percent worse from the 2-point area of the floor.