Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks Nearly Had Blockbuster Trade for Jalen Brunson

The New York Knicks are in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999. They have dominated these playoffs, winning 11 straight playoff games, which is tied for the third-longest playoff winning streak in NBA history.

A big reason for their success is star point guard Jalen Brunson, who has averaged 26.9 PPG and 6.6 APG. The Knicks were criticized when they signed him away from the Dallas Mavericks for more than $100 million, as many people didn't think he would be able to take this kind of jump. He is now the best player on a team in the NBA Finals, which is a ceiling no one saw coming when the Mavs took him in the second round of the 2018 NBA Draft.

It still hurts Mavericks fans to see him succeed elsewhere. Brunson originally wanted to stay in Dallas, going to the Mavs with a contract extension in mind in 2021, but they weren't sold yet, wanting to wait until after the 2021-22 season. He was willing to take the most they could offer, which was four years, $55 million, but at that point, that would've been a big risk.

The 2022 playoffs were a coming-out party for Brunson, who helped guide the Mavs past the Utah Jazz in the first round as Luka Doncic missed a few games with an injury. Brunson continued to shine as the Mavs made it to the Western Conference Finals, which made the Knicks comfortable with giving him $100 million.

May 23, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) brings the ball up court in the second quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers during game three of the eastern conference finals for the 2026 NBA playoffs at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images | David Richard-Imagn Images

Mavericks, Knicks Discussed Jalen Brunson Trade in 2022

The Mavericks had the chance to get something back for Brunson rather than lose him for nothing in free agency. Fred Katz of The Athletic reported that the Mavericks and Knicks discussed the framework of a trade in 2022 regarding Brunson.

"Not long before the 2022 trade deadline, they and the Knicks began negotiations on a deal that would have brought Brunson to New York, league sources told The Athletic. The two sides discussed various constructions. One included young bench guard Immanuel Quickley. Another incorporated promising rookie Quentin Grimes. Numerous other iterations emerged. But across all of them was one common denominator: The Mavericks wanted first-round picks."

The Mavericks wanted their 2023 first-round pick back, which they had initially sent out to the Knicks for Kristaps Porzingis, citing that the Knicks would likely need to send out picks to shed salary to sign Brunson in free agency. However, the Knicks wouldn't budge on it, thinking that Quickley and Grimes would have been a good enough package.

The Knicks did end up making a salary dump, sending out Nerlens Noel, Alec Burks, and a few second-round picks to the Detroit Pistons in order to make space for Brunson.

In hindsight, it would've been nice to get Grimes and Quickley back for Brunson, who are each quality rotation players, rather than lose Brunson for nothing. It's understandable to want their draft pick back, but since it was top-10 protected, they ended up tanking the last two games of the 2022-23 season to secure the pick anyway, landing them Dereck Lively II in a small trade back.

They also traded for Kyrie Irving that season, which they may not have done had they not lost Brunson for nothing. Irving helped them make the NBA Finals, and they felt they needed to make that risky trade in part because they didn't get anything back for Brunson. So, maybe, it was all for the best?

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