Dallas Basketball

Kenyon Martin Jr. Wants Trade From Rockets; Could Mavs Expand Christian Wood Deal?

The Mavericks are still searching for wing depth, and Kenyon Martin Jr.’s recent trade request to the Rockets could open the door for an expanded Christian Wood trade.
Dalton Trigg|
Kenyon Martin Jr. Wants Trade From Rockets; Could Mavs Expand Christian Wood Deal?
Kenyon Martin Jr. Wants Trade From Rockets; Could Mavs Expand Christian Wood Deal?

The Dallas Mavericks got their upgraded big man last week when they agreed to trade four end-of-the-bench players and the No. 26 in Thursday’s NBA Draft for Christian Wood. Due to the league’s Stepien rule, which prevents teams from trading first-round picks in consecutive years, the deal can’t officially go through until the Mavs make a selection with their pick.

This could potentially be a good thing for Dallas, as it’s still searching for wing depth, and a solid, young Rockets wing might have just become available.

According to a report from The Athletic, 21-year-old forward Kenyon Martin Jr. approached the Rockets’ front office about being traded from the team with a new wave of young talent coming in with picks No. 3, 17 and 26.

If the Rockets wanted to give Martin Jr. his wish while also getting a young, athletic prospect in return as his replacement, why not expand the Wood trade with the Mavs on Thursday night? Here is what the revised trade would look like:

Mavs receive: Christian Wood, Kenyon Martin Jr.

Rockets receive: Josh Green, Boban Marjanovic, Trey Burke, Sterling Brown, Marquese Chriss and the No. 26 pick

Green is still raw offensively, but he’s the equivalent of the Energizer Bunny on defense from the moment he steps on the court to the moment he leaves it. Although offense isn’t Green’s strong suit, the Rockets have experienced firsthand what kind of potential Green can have on offense, as the 21-year-old scored 17 points on 6-7 shooting from the field in Houston on Jan. 7.

Martin averaged 8.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 79 games for the Rockets this season while playing just 21 minutes per game. He shot 53.3 percent from the field, including 35.7 percent from deep. Although Martin Jr. is further along in his development than Green is, he’s also played nearly double the number of total minutes Green has in two seasons. If Martin Jr. isn’t going to be happy in Houston, this could be an easy-fix option for both sides to consider.

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Dalton Trigg
DALTON TRIGG

Dalton Trigg is the Editor-In-Chief for Dallas Basketball, as well as the Executive Editor overseeing Inside The Rockets, Inside The Spurs, All Knicks, and The Magic Insider. He is the founder and host for the Mavs Step Back Podcast, which is a proud part of the Blue Wire podcast network. Trigg graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi’s College of Business and Economic Development with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship in 2016. After spending a few years with multiple Dallas Mavericks-related blogs, including SB Nation’s Mavs Moneyball, Trigg joined DallasBasketball.com as a staff writer in 2018 and never looked back. At the start of 2022, he was promoted to the EIC title he holds now. Through the years, Trigg has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, Mavs GM Nico Harrison, now-retired legend Dirk Nowitzki and many other current/former players and team staffers. Many of those interviews and other articles by Trigg have been aggregated by other well-known sports media websites, such as Yahoo Sports, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report and others. You can find Trigg on all major social media channels, but his most prevalent platform is on Twitter. Whether it’s posting links to his DBcom work, live-tweeting Mavs games or merely giving his opinions on things going on with Dallas and the rest of the NBA, the daily content never stops rolling. For any inquiries, please email Dalton@MavsStepBack.com.

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