Mavs' Tim Hardaway Jr. Ideal Trade Target For Hornets?

The Dallas Mavericks have a lot of work to do as far as roster construction is concerned. Kyrie Irving and Christian Wood are set to reach free agency and the need to overhaul the defense remains prevalent. There could be many new faces on the roster as a result.

“A lot of people won’t be back next season," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said of the team's roster. "There will be a lot of new faces”

Tim Hardaway Jr. is among the players that could end up being on the move this offseason. If the goal is to build around a Luka Doncic and Irving backcourt, there needs to be more size on the wing with an emphasis on defensive impact. Hardaway is small for a wing and

When identifying the ideal offseason trade target for each NBA team, Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes selected Hardaway for the Charlotte Hornets. The context would be that if P.J. Washington departs in free agency, the team needs to add more perimeter shooting.

The Hornets struggled to convert from beyond the arc with Washington being the only player outside of LaMelo Ball to shoot above 32.5 percent among their 10 highest volume shooters. Regardless of what Washington does this offseason, Charlotte needs to add more shooting threats.

After a slow start to the season, Hardaway ended up shooting 38.5 percent on 7.7 attempts per game. While it's difficult to remain consistent in such a role, his aggressiveness proved important on a Mavs team riddled with one-dimensional offensive players.

Would the Mavs be interested in taking on Gordon Hayward's expiring salary worth $31.5 million? His inability to stay healthy would make a team operating with a short window likely reluctant to do so. Adding more salary for the 2023-24 season would be challenging to balance unless it included Davis Bertans' contract. Perhaps there's room for a deal there.

One angle for the Mavs to take could be to land one of the Hornets' bench bigs. They gave a long-term deal to Nick Richards and the team still has Mark Williams and Kai Jones. The main question would be which big would the Hornets be willing to part with in a trade? Williams was drafted in the lottery a year ago. Jones hasn't proven anything in the NBA yet.

The Hornets have plenty of salary cap space this summer. If the Mavs could reduce their payroll for next season by making a trade involving Hardaway's contract, perhaps that could be of interest, too. There are many variables to consider as far as potential trade packages are concerned.

If the Mavs do end up moving Hardaway, they don't have a roster talented enough to justify a trade that prioritizes simply shedding his contract. Given the underwhelming trade value he carries, it could be challenging to navigate making an impactful trade.

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