Luka Doncic, Daniel Gafford Reunion Could Fix Lakers Center Woes Amid Trade Rumors

Any chance the Dallas Mavericks could stomach another trade with the Los Angeles Lakers?

The last one didn't go so well for Dallas—not from a public relations standpoint, at least—but the Mavericks once again have something the Lakers want.

Before, it was Luka Dončić. Now, it's the kind of rim-running big man L.A. knows it needs.

"It would be great to have a center that was a vertical threat, lob threat, and someone that could protect the interior defensively," Lakers president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka told reporters.

The Mavericks brought in Daniel Gafford at the 2024 trade deadline to fill that exact role. And the fit was so seamless with Dončić that Dallas was jostling with the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals just a few months later.

The Mavericks could help put that partnership back together. They "quietly sniffed around" about a Gafford deal at this deadline, per ESPN's Tim MacMahon, and they have incentive to keep searching.

Dallas' frontcourt grew expensive when it made Anthony Davis the centerpiece of its return package for Dončić. The price tag is going up soon, too, with Dereck Lively II becoming extension-eligible next offseason.

Gafford has a single season left on his contract. Dallas would have a hard time covering the cost of his next one with the amount of coin it has already committed to Davis and will commit to Lively sooner than later.

So Gafford should be gettable. And probably not for some exorbitant asking price. A future first and salary-filler might do the trick, although maybe the Mavs try to squeeze out one more asset just knowing that doing another deal with the Lakers may not look the greatest.

That's still probably worth it to L.A.

This club knows Gafford works well with Dončić, and every move it makes for the foreseeable future should be about enhancing its new franchise face. Gafford sets solid screens, finishes above the rim, hits the glass and protects the paint. He does everything you'd want a big man in a Dončić-led offense to do.

The Lakers could try exploring other options to fill their center spot, obviously. Maybe they'd chase a Brook Lopez reunion in free agency. Or try plucking Robert Williams III away from the Portland Trail Blazers. Perhaps they have what the Brooklyn Nets would want for Nic Claxton. Maybe there's a deal to be made with New York Knicks for Mitchell Robinson.

Lopez is 37, though, and he was never the bounciest big man. Williams and Robinson always have a hard time staying on the floor. Claxton's trade cost could be steep, and he disappointed to a rather significant degree this season.

There just aren't the same worries with Gafford. His game is consistent. His availability is typically consistent, too (only 57 games this season, but 72-plus in each of the previous three). And, this can't be stressed enough, has an established chemistry with Dončić.

If the choice is between finding a center who might work with Dončić or adding one who has already done exemplary work alongside him, the choice feels awfully easy, doesn't it?