Death of ‘Plan Powder’: Mavs Need to Hoard When-Available Talent, Not Future Cap Space
Here at DallasBasketball.com, we’ve written numerous times over the last decade about the Dallas Mavericks’ desire to keep their projected cap space intact when heading into off-seasons. "Plan Powder,'' as we coined it (with a nod to GM Donnie Nelson). However, with the NBA’s "Player Empowerment Era'' in full bloom, it’s time to kill "Plan Powder.''
We've annually watched and charted the Mavs entering free agency with large amounts of cap space while but ultimately coming up empty-handed - at least in the sense of what their ‘Plan A’ was.
Now, though, this so-called ‘powder’ that Mavs have always tried so hard to keep dry seems immaterial - especially when it can, in theory, be created at any moment.
Look at the Miami Heat last summer as the most recent example of projected cap space being a mythical power. Miami was capped out, but was still able to land a star player in Jimmy Butler because, simply put, that’s where Butler wanted to be. So, the Philadelphia 76ers were willing to work out a sign-and-trade to keep from losing Butler for nothing, even though the return wasn’t enough to fully make up for his loss.
And Miami is now a contender again.
When Kevin Durant decided that he wanted to join the already-star-studded Warriors in 2016, Golden State had to shed salary, as well as have Durant take a slight discount to make it work. They did it all by sign-and-trading Harrison Barnes to the Mavs as well as trading Andrew Bogut’s $11 million expiring into Dallas’ cap space.
And you know what happened with the Warriors.
Point being, an NBA player is going to play whenever he wants to play. Both sides will find a way. It's a lesson Dallas should've learned from the Dwight Howard pursuit that eventually meant not drafting Giannis Antetokounmpo; that $200,000 of Howard-earmarked cap space mattered not at all.
Hoarding future cap space? There's no need to worry about "future'' over "present.''
Using the same logic from the Heat/Butler and Warriors/Durant situations, let’s say, just for fun, that the Mavs get a "yes'' from Antetokounmpo in 2021 free agency of 2021.
At that point, the Mavs' cap situation would barely matter. Dallas would move mountains at the appropriate time when necessary to make it happen, and Milwaukee, history tells us, would play along to salvage what it could.
Of course, the next test in this front office's team-building means a step up from the signing of solid helpers like Dwight Powell, Seth Curry, Maxi Kleber, Dorian Finney-Smith and Delon Wright to team-friendly, long-term deals. Now it needs to be about luring stars to align with Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis - and about moving more mountains when it's time to do so.
Given our recent conversation with Mavs owner Mark Cuban regarding the mutual interest with Tim Hardaway Jr. in executing a long-term contract extension this summer, we think the front office might be on the right track here. A long-term extension for Hardaway Jr. would figure take a good chunk out of the team’s 2021 projected cap space (currently projected at about $34 million when factoring in Hardaway Jr.’s contract expiring).
At first glance, that would seem to be the exact opposite of "keeping powder dry.'' But with lessons learned? The "destination'' teams - which, with Luka here is something Dallas can inch toward being - don't collect "dry powder.'' They collect "great players.''
