NBA Analyst Picks Mavs' Christian Wood Trade as 'Most Impactful'
The Dallas Mavericks' offseason has been quiet lately, but it definitely didn't start out that way. On June 15, the Mavs made a trade with the Houston Rockets to acquire versatile big man Christian Wood in exchange for Trey Burke, Sterling Brown, Marquese Chriss, Boban Marjanovic and the No. 26 pick in the NBA Draft.
When you consider that the Mavs were still able to trade into the second round to select Jaden Hardy, a player they reportedly had listed as the 19th best prospect on their draft board, at pick No. 37, they essentially got Wood for four expiring contracts of players who never got playing time anyway. In other words, Dallas got a steal, and at least one NBA expert agrees with that sentiment.
"Christian Wood fills all the things Dallas was missing in the postseason – a big man who can spread the floor and score – if he's in the right frame of mind," writes ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk. "He should be able to give Luka Doncic much needed help, and JaVale McGee will give them some much-needed rim protection."
Wood has impressive skills for a big man. He has motion shooting talent, can attack off the catch, is a lob threat on rim rolls, and can is a scoring threat in isolation and post-ups. With an elite passer like Doncic to make plays, Wood's skill-set will be maximized. Last season, Wood averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets while shooting 50 percent from the field, including 39 percent from deep.
"If there is any other player in the pick and roll that I could ask for it would be [Luka Doncic]," Wood said. "He is the perfect pick and roll partner to ask for, and I’m excited. It is going to be fun."
