Mavs Rumors: Christian Wood Sign-and-Trade 'Not Ruled Out' amid Lakers FA Buzz

The Dallas Mavericks don't appear to be interested in re-signing power forward Christian Wood this summer, but they reportedly are open to using him to recoup some assets.

According to NBA insider Marc Stein, Dallas "has not ruled out participating in a sign-and-trade deal that lands Christian Wood with a new team if it is presented with such a scenario." Wood was recently linked to the Los Angeles Lakers, as The Athletic's Jovan Buha reported last week that they are in the market for another big man.

Stein outlined the potential hurdles the Mavs will face if they pursue a sign-and-trade for Wood, writing, "They are already hard-capped and only $9 million and change away from hitting the NBA's first luxury-tax apron, so it has been stressed to me that they would have to really like the player they receive in return to partake in such a deal."

The Lakers are also not guaranteed to be able to sign Wood on the open market, as it was also recently noted by Stein that they "are obviously restricted in what they can offer" following their slew of offseason moves.

Dallas had acquired Wood on the day of the 2022 NBA draft in a deal with the Houston Rockets, but things didn't turn out the way either side had hoped. The 27-year-old started just 17 out of the 67 games he played this past season and averaged 16.6 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists. All those numbers were down from his previous year in Houston.

The Mavs no longer have room for Wood after revamping their frontcourt this offseason. They drafted promising center Dereck Lively II with the No. 12 pick last month. They also acquired power forward Grant Williams from the Boston Celtics and center Richaun Holmes from the Sacramento Kings.

It's clear that Wood will be with a new team next season, but it remains to be seen if Dallas will have to settle for losing him for nothing.