Mavericks urged to trade for former No. 3 pick Cooper Flagg in Kyrie Irving trade originally appeared on The Sporting News Click here to add Sports News as your go-to source.
Cooper Flagg’s debut with the Dallas Mavericks is on schedule, but the team should continue to focus on surrounding the rookie with complementary pieces that fit the new schedule.
advertise
Dallas will add another lottery talent this summer from what is billed as an extremely deep 2026 NBA Draft class. In addition to their future options, the Mavericks front office may also be interested in taking on some overlooked development projects with strong upside.
In fact, Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz recently suggested that a bold offseason trade could give the Mavericks the chance to begin an exciting rebuilding project with the Portland Trail Blazers’ former No. 3 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
“Scott Henderson was drafted third overall in 2023 as the heir apparent to Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers, but he still has yet to earn a full-time starting role,” Swartz wrote.
“Henderson is one of the most athletic point guards in the NBA… He will wow you with thunderous dunks at times and is growing as a playmaker even if his turnovers are still too high.”
advertise
“Teams like the Memphis Grizzlies and Dallas Mavericks could become suitors if they continue to rebuild and explore trades for Ja Morant and Kyrie Irving.”
While the numbers from Scoot Henderson’s first three NBA seasons are inconclusive, they don’t tell the full story. He missed the first 51 games of his third straight season with a torn hamstring, and things didn’t improve after spending time in the G-League during his freshman and sophomore seasons.
However, since returning to the Trail Blazers lineup on February 6, he has shown flashes of brilliance. Since then, he has contributed 13.2 points, 4.2 assists and 2.7 rebounds in just 22.9 minutes, with an effective field goal percentage of 48.3% below par, but the explosive guard is starting to find a rhythm. Henderson’s scoring volume and efficiency have soared in the past two games, reaching 22.5 points with an excellent score of 64.0/53.3/83.3.
He’s starting to use his superhuman athleticism while finishing outside shots at an alarming rate, which could give Dallas a reason to pair him with Flagg.
advertise
An offseason trade that completed a Kyrie Irving-centered swap for Henderson seemed ambitious at first, but the possibility of a three-team trade that rerouted Irving to a contender and rerouted Henderson to Dallas could exist this offseason. Portland no longer needs another star guard as Damian Lillard and Jrue Holiday already dominate their backcourt.
Even so, the concept may remain a hypothesis through the summer.
More NBA: Lakers’ Deandre Ayton discusses recent string of highlights