In an attempt to take advantage of the next TV contract and add more roster places for players, there have been reports that the NBA may expand within the next four to five years. There has never been greater talent in the NBA, and the Charlotte Bobcats were added as the 30th franchise 20 years ago. It rapidly makes sense to expand.
In the unlikely event that an expansion draft takes place following this season, which players would the Dallas Mavericks choose to protect?
A few housekeeping guidelines because the expansion draft regulations can be intricate. Teams are limited to protecting eight players at a time; if they have more than eight players to protect (because of impending free agents), they have to leave at least one player unprotected. In this hypothetical scenario, the expansion draft takes place prior to the Draft and following the NBA Finals in 2025. Second, players who have an opt-out (player or team option) in their contract for that offseason, as well as prospective restricted free agents, can be safeguarded. A restricted free agent would become an unrestricted free agent if they were chosen in the expansion draft, but their Bird Rights would remain with the team that selected them.
Last but not least, each side may only choose one individual. Fans should be aware that if the Mavericks were to leave Kyrie Irving, Jaden Hardy, and Naji Marshall unprotected and an expansion team were to take Hardy due to cap limits, Irving or Marshall would become safe. This won’t matter too much in this exercise. In light of these new tax incentives, don’t be shocked if teams choose to leave players with large contracts unprotected during an expansion draft—even if they are talented players—in order to clear the cap.
The Mavericks could choose to protect the following players: The following players have contracts: Luka Doncic, Klay Thompson, P.J. Washington, Daniel Gafford, Maxi Kleber, Naji Marshall, A.J. Lawson (under contract, may be waived), Kyrie Irving, Dwight Powell, Dereck Lively II, Olivier-Maxence Prosper, Jaden Hardy (restricted free agent), Quentin Grimes, Brandon Williams, and Kessler Edwards. Only three players from Dallas—Markieff Morris, Spencer Dinwiddie, and Dante Exum—will be unrestricted free agents in 2019.
