The Dallas Mavericks are desperate to shed future money, as they’ll be a second apron team once they reach their roster limit. With how harsh the second-apron penalties are, it makes no sense for the Mavericks to be there if they can avoid it. But they have a few salaries that are going to be difficult to move.
One such salary is Caleb Martin, who has three years, $28 million remaining on his contract, including this year, and for most of this season, he’s been unplayable. He has played well in some games recently, starting each game of this four-game win streak, and he had 15 points in a loss to the Denver Nuggets last week. But the Mavericks would love to move off his salary, while a team may try to hope that Martin could eventually bounce back to his Miami Heat form.
There may be no more desperate team than the Milwaukee Bucks, as they try to prove to Giannis Antetokounmpo that they’re serious about contending. It was just announced that Antetokounmpo would be out for 4-6 weeks due to a calf strain, but they may want to make a late-season push when he comes back.
Eric Nehm of The Athletic proposed some trades for the Bucks that would fit within their tax constraints, and they proposed this one for the Mavericks.
Mavericks Receive: Amir Coffey, Jericho Sims
Bucks Receive: Caleb Martin
Jan 17, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Caleb Martin (16) drives to the basket against the Utah Jazz during the second half at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
READ MORE: Dallas Mavericks Need to Trade Anthony Davis
The Mavericks Would Take This Trade and Run If They Could
A few things would get in the way of this. First, the Mavericks already have 15 roster spots filled, so they’d have to waive someone or re-route a player to the Brooklyn Nets, attaching a second-round pick or two to do so.
Secondly, the Mavericks would prefer to open up another spot to sign Ryan Nembhard to a standard NBA contract, and Moussa Cisse is making a case for it, too. But there are only so many roster spots.
However, if they can trade away Caleb Martin without giving up draft capital and get expiring contracts in return, they have to do it, no questions asked. Jericho Sims does have a player option for next year, but he’s on a minimum contract, so it’s palatable. He can veto a trade because of a rare rule after signing so many minimum deals, but I don’t see why he’d do that. If this were an actual trade, the Mavericks could use an athletic big in the event they also move off Daniel Gafford and/or Anthony Davis.
Martin was a waste of a trade. It was overshadowed by the colossal mistake of trading Luka Doncic, but sending Quentin Grimes to Philadelphia was an awful move. And to think that Dallas initially sent the 76ers a second-round pick before Martin failed his physical.
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