NBA Rumors: Wendell Carter Jr. Eyed by Mavericks; Magic Not Looking to Trade Center
The Dallas Mavericks are among multiple teams who have shown interest in trading for Orlando Magic center Wendell Carter Jr., but Orlando isn't looking to deal the ex-Duke star, per Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.
Carter has averaged 11.2 points on 51.9 percent shooting and 6.7 rebounds in his sixth NBA season. He has started 18 of 24 games in an injury-shortened campaign largely due to a fractured third metacarpal in his left hand.
Right knee tendinitis also cost Carter five games in January, but he's been back for good since returning to the floor against the New York Knicks on Jan. 15.
The Mavericks have seemingly been connected to any forward or big man on the trading block. The team reportedly had discussions on Pascal Siakam before the Toronto Raptors traded the forward to the Indiana Pacers. Fischer has previously mentioned the Mavs' interest in Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma. Longtime NBA reporter Marc Stein noted the Mavs' interest in Charlotte Hornets forward P.J. Washington. Stein also noted that the Mavs and Milwaukee Bucks have spoken about a swap of Grant Williams and Bobby Portis.
What's abundantly clear is that Dallas wants to improve at forward before Thursday's trade deadline hits. The Mavericks have slid down the standings a bit of late and now sit in eighth in the Western Conference at 27-23.
They invested heavily around superstar Luka Dončić this offseason, re-signing Kyrie Irving to be his backcourt mate and adding more pieces at forward and center in Williams, Derrick Jones Jr., Dereck Lively II and more.
Dallas is clearly better off than last year, when the team failed to even make the play-in tournament. But the Western Conference is a gauntlet, and failing to improve at the trade deadline could mean a further slide down the standings.
At any rate, Dallas is clearly a team to watch as the deadline time of 3 p.m. ET on Tuesday looms.
