Did the Dallas Mavericks Make the Right Decision to Extend Naji Marshall?

The Dallas Mavericks announced on Sunday that they extended Naji Marshall on a three-year, $52.2 million deal, which is fully guaranteed through 2030.

Marshall was set to enter the final year of his contract, worth a little more than $9 million, but Masai Ujiri has decided to keep Marshall around, at least for now.

The unique contract setup Marshall received still has him as trade-eligible, according to NBA cap expert Yossi Gozlan, and it's on a declining scale. He'll be making $18,195,000 the first year, then it declines to $16.7 million in the final year.

On first glance, it's solid value for Marshall, who is coming off a career-best 15.2 PPG, as he became a master of the floater this past season. He was a good defender in New Orleans and at the start of his tenure in Dallas (when basketball still mattered, playing with Luka Doncic), and you'd like to think he could bounce back to being a great defender again.

Mar 21, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Naji Marshall (13) controls the ball during the game between the Mavericks and the Clippers at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Someone who can create his own shot with consistency while being a good defender is a valuable tool in today's NBA.

On the other hand, Marshall has been on mostly bad teams throughout his NBA career, his defense has fallen off a little, and his three-point shot has been downright bad in Dallas, shooting below 30% in each season.

There is also the matter of a very crowded frontcourt in Dallas. They traded for Santi Aldama and Zaccharie Risacher this offseason, drafted Morez Johnson Jr., and still have Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II, Moussa Cisse, Cooper Flagg, Caleb Martin, and P.J. Washington, who can all soak up minutes in the frontcourt.

Washington could be the odd man out with all of these bodies, as he's entering the first season of a four-year, $88 million deal. However, it's still a lot of bodies in the meantime.

Was This Worth it for the Mavericks?

This is one of the few questionable decisions that the Dallas Mavericks have made in this new regime with Masai Ujiri and Mike Schmitz. If there's one thing we know about Ujiri, though, it's that he loves his wings.

Marshall is a good player, but NBA insider Marc Stein reported that the Mavs had received trade interest in him. Maybe the offers weren't good enough, or maybe the Mavs didn't even get far enough in the conversation to know the offer, but it would've been worth exploring that avenue.

I've been on the side of the Mavericks trading Marshall because of his lack of shooting, which gets in the way of Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg being successful. While they still could trade him, it gets a little bit harder at the end of the day with this longer deal.

Marshall will be making around the non-taxpayer midlevel exception moving forward. It's hard to complain with that value, even if he feels a little unnecessary on this current roster.

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