NBA Rumors: 5 Moves That Would Boost Dallas Mavericks' Title Defense

The defending champion Dallas Mavericks sit at 14-8, and sans Jason Kidd, have a full compliment of players after the return of injured veterans Vince Carter and Dirk Nowitzki. 

Dallas is playing good basketball right now, and are winners of four straight heading into tonight's nationally televised game against Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder. 

Right now, the Mavericks would most likely contend that creating better chemistry is more important than bringing another piece in. But speculation of a trade or move to occur before the deadline has focused on the two biggest free agents come this summer: Deron Williams and Dwight Howard.

While the framework of those two moves is possible, there are other moves the team might make to stay current in the West. Here are five possibilities, including D12 and D-Will's possible formation of a Big 3 with Dirk in Dallas. 

Trade for Deron Williams

Let's get the obvious out of the way first. Deron and Dwight are the most sought-after free agents in this year's class. Both are linked to Dallas. Both will be until they each put on a new uniform.

Williams has options come this offseason. If the New Jersey Nets can't make a deal to land Dwight Howard and lock both up to long-term contracts, Williams has a wish list that includes the Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks.

Why wouldn't D-Will want to come to Dallas? Why wouldn't the Mavs make a huge play for the somewhat-disappointed point guard?

If the Nets continue to struggle, how open would they be to trading away their superstar and starting over with young talent, draft picks and cap space to entice a middle-of-the-pack free agent?

I'd say pretty unlikely, but if the Nets open up the trade possibilities the way it has been done for Howard, the Mavs could get involved to acquire their point guard of the future. 

Trade for Dwight Howard

Like Williams, Howard is going to be extremely difficult to deal for. While his wish list and long-term contract extension include the Mavericks, the steps to get him to Dallas before the deadline probably aren't in the cards.

The Orlando Magic want to include Hedo Turkoglu in any deal, and will ask for the moon when watching another franchise center walk away.

The Magic would have to take a major concession if they wanted to move Dwight to the Mavs, and frankly could get a lot more from the Nets or Lakers than they could Dallas.

That's not to say the Mavs wouldn't trade the maximum amount of draft picks and talent to get him. However, like D-Will, if the Mavs want to get either, they need to pray for a free-agent scenario for both.

A more likely scenario would be trade for a smaller fish and get ready for this offseason with those two.  

Trade for John Salmons

John Salmons has been linked to the Mavericks at the deadline for several years. He's a solid wing defender and scorer, and can create his own shot as well as anyone. 

He plays for the Sacramento Kings, who desperately need to get younger and develop some talent in places other than point guard and post. They aren't contending in the West, and wouldn't mind grabbing another draft pick or young talent.

The Mavs could send Dominique Jones or the draft rights to one of their young foreign players, Nick Calathes or Petteri Koponen, and next year's first-rounder for Salmons.

This kind of move would depend on the health of Carter and Kidd, as well as the defense's effort against teams with great perimeter scorers. 

Give Dominique Jones More Minutes

Dominique Jones can play. He tears up the D-League every time he is sent down for assignment, and when he comes back to Dallas there is simply no room for him to play and continue to develop.

With Kidd out at least a week with a strained calf, now could be a good time to utilize his penetration and good defense to, at the very least, decide if he's a guard of the future or a future trade piece. 

Rodrigue Beaubois and Jones are familiar with each other from their time in summer league and preseason action, and I for one would be interested to see a four-guard rotation that included those two, plus Jason Terry and Delonte West. 

Continue to Be Patient with Lamar Odom

Lamar Odom just isn't all there yet. His attitude and work ethic seem to be on the up and up, but his translation of that to production on the court just hasn't happened.

Fortunately for the Mavs, they can continue to be patient with one of the most versatile players in the NBA.

Terry, Nowitzki and Carter can all put the ball in the basket. They don't need Odom to average his normal 14 points and 8 rebounds. They need him to play good defense and take advantage of mismatches he's going to create on the offensive end.

The depth is there for Odom to continue to learn one of the most complicated systems in the NBA. Rick Carlisle knows they will need him come April-June, so it doesn't matter if his transformation takes two months or two games.