Woj: Gafford to Dallas; GWill to Charlotte for P.J.

[obnoxiousmime]

https://hoopshype.com/2024/02/09/mavs-wanted-to-get-out-of-the-grant-williams-business/

“The fact they gave up a 2030 swap for Grant Williams and then dumped him as soon as they possibly could, which they were determined to dump him,” said Tim MacMahon on the Brian Windhorst Podcast. “Not just about getting P.J. Washington, they wanted to be out of the Grant Williams’ business. He rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. “He switched from Lukas to Tatums by the way… his shoe selection.
Source: RealGM

I really wanted to keep Grant for depth reasons and to maintain the asset for potential trades. However, everything that has happened in Dallas has reinforced the concerns we had with him last year. Not only does he play outside his role way too often, but his on-court yapping and antics are an embarrassment not just to himself but to his teammates who are forced to defend him.

He's kind of made himself a joke around the league. He'll eventually be fine, but he just needs to mature and realize his own limitations. What's surprising is, usually smart guys with goofy senses of humor tend to be humble and team players. I can't really think of a direct comparison, maybe Dwight Howard with the conceitedness and goofiness that teammates rolled their eyes at? But Dwight could at least back it up because he was a superstar.

[wdleehi]

https://hoopshype.com/2024/02/09/mavs-wanted-to-get-out-of-the-grant-williams-business/

“The fact they gave up a 2030 swap for Grant Williams and then dumped him as soon as they possibly could, which they were determined to dump him,” said Tim MacMahon on the Brian Windhorst Podcast. “Not just about getting P.J. Washington, they wanted to be out of the Grant Williams’ business. He rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. “He switched from Lukas to Tatums by the way… his shoe selection.
Source: RealGM

I really wanted to keep Grant for depth reasons and to maintain the asset for potential trades. However, everything that has happened in Dallas has reinforced the concerns we had with him last year. Not only does he play outside his role way too often, but his on-court yapping and antics are an embarrassment not just to himself but to his teammates who are forced to defend him.

He's kind of made himself a joke around the league. He'll eventually be fine, but he just needs to mature and realize his own limitations. What's surprising is, usually smart guys with goofy senses of humor tend to be humble and team players. I can't really think of a direct comparison, maybe Dwight Howard with the conceitedness and goofiness that teammates rolled their eyes at? But Dwight could at least back it up because he was a superstar.

At what point does the team look with what is consistent?   How many players played better away from Dallas then with Dallas?


Not saying the Celtics should have matched.   His role isn't worth the cost.   

[tonydelk]

https://hoopshype.com/2024/02/09/mavs-wanted-to-get-out-of-the-grant-williams-business/

“The fact they gave up a 2030 swap for Grant Williams and then dumped him as soon as they possibly could, which they were determined to dump him,” said Tim MacMahon on the Brian Windhorst Podcast. “Not just about getting P.J. Washington, they wanted to be out of the Grant Williams’ business. He rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. “He switched from Lukas to Tatums by the way… his shoe selection.
Source: RealGM

You also are talking about a team that has Kyrie Irving and Luka.  Two of the hardest players to please and play with.  While Grant was notorious for being a loud mouth on the C's and he absolutely complained to the ref's way to much I'm not sure all of this is on him.  Zinger played much better here and Washington then with Luka.  We all know how Kyrie brings teams down to his level.  Lebron has been the only one that could reign him in and it wasn't long.  I think this is more about Dallas then Grant but I'm sure Grant played his part.

I really wanted to keep Grant for depth reasons and to maintain the asset for potential trades. However, everything that has happened in Dallas has reinforced the concerns we had with him last year. Not only does he play outside his role way too often, but his on-court yapping and antics are an embarrassment not just to himself but to his teammates who are forced to defend him.

He's kind of made himself a joke around the league. He'll eventually be fine, but he just needs to mature and realize his own limitations. What's surprising is, usually smart guys with goofy senses of humor tend to be humble and team players. I can't really think of a direct comparison, maybe Dwight Howard with the conceitedness and goofiness that teammates rolled their eyes at? But Dwight could at least back it up because he was a superstar.

[obnoxiousmime]

I understand what you guys are saying about Dallas not having the greatest track record, but this is two years in a row now where Grant has been labeled a problem in the locker room. He admitted to being unprofessional last year when Mazzulla reduced his playing time, now he's been shipped out in record time for a player who's remarkably similar to him in position, skillset, contract, and age.

Do we know for certain everything that goes on behind the scenes? Of course not, but when there's this much smoke there usually is a fire. If a guy continues to be dumped even though he doesn't make a lot and is still young, there's usually a reason for it.

[Atzar]

I find it plausible that Grant is a personality that doesn't necessarily fit into every room he enters.

I find it equally plausible that the Mavs have built a superhero cult around Luka in an effort to keep him happy in Dallas and any sign of nonconformity - like wearing Tatums instead of Lukas - is viewed as a threat.  The fact that the sneaker thing was the only specific example MacMahon gave was curious to me, and perhaps didn't say what he intended it to say. 

Or maybe I need to adjust my tinfoil hat.  I don't know.  Whichever the case, I would note that we've heard the story from one side and not the other here.  Could also be that this is all just water cooler noise and the truth is that he sucked in Dallas and they dumped him while he still had a whisper of value. 

[Who]

Zach Kram

Well, it’s unclear just how good Washington is. His scoring is mostly empty calories; he doesn’t rebound, draw free throws, or create open shots for teammates. Advanced stats loathe the former Hornet. DARKO thinks he makes his team 1.7 points worse than average, per 100 possessions. Estimated plus-minus rates him worse, at minus-2.2 per 100. And box plus-minus hates him most of all, at minus-3.0 per 100 this year, one of the worst marks in the league.

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2024/2/8/24066535/2024-nba-trade-deadline-winners-and-losers

Pelton

Both Washington and Williams are 25, in their fifth NBA seasons and play primarily power forward. Washington is listed at 6-foot-7, 230 lbs., and Williams at 6-foot-6, 236 lbs. There may not be many more superficially similar pairs of players in the NBA.

Coming off their rookie contracts, Washington and Williams hit restricted free agency last summer. As part of a sign-and-trade deal with the Boston Celtics, the Mavericks gave Williams a deal worth an average of $13.3 million over four years. After an extended impasse with Charlotte, Washington landed a deal worth $15.5 million over three years.

Somehow, a half-season later, Dallas found enough difference between the two players to give up a lightly protected first-round pick to upgrade from Williams to Washington.

I can see how the Mavericks found Williams lacking after viewing him as an important piece last summer. Having begun the year as Dallas' starting 4, he bounced in and out of the lineup and had come off the bench the last three games. Because Williams is such a low-usage offensive player, he has to score with above-average efficiency to be a contributor on offense, and that wasn't the case after two higher-percentage seasons in Boston.

The question here is what problem Washington is solving. Five years into his career, I'm still not sure what Washington is as an NBA player, in part because he's had so little stability around him with the Hornets.

Washington does a variety of different things, and is clearly an upgrade on Williams as a shot creator. He averaged a career-high 15.7 points per game in 2022-23, and this year's drop-off is more about playing fewer minutes than being less productive. Yet Williams' best season came largely as an undersized center in 2021-22, a role he's unlikely to play in Dallas with rookie Dereck Lively II's emergence, and after the team also added Daniel Gafford from the Washington Wizards in a separate deal on Thursday.

As a power forward, Washington's shooting is a limitation, particularly on a team that needs space for Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. He's a career 36% shooter, but trending the wrong direction at 35% last season and 32% thus far this year. And although Washington supplies more rim protection, he's an overall defensive downgrade from Williams.

If this were a like-for-like challenge trade, I'd get it. However, the 2027 first-round pick was the last one the Mavericks could trade. As a result, Dallas had to trade swap rights on its 2028 first-rounder as part of the Gafford trade. The pick also comes the season after Luka can become an unrestricted free agent by declining his 2026-27 player option, meaning the Mavericks may be rebuilding the roster by that point.

Hollinger

"I think there is a pretty major disconnect between the idea of PJ Washington and the reality of PJ Washington.The idea part is that he's a positionless, switchable defender who can stretch the floor from 3 or punish smaller defenders on the block. The reality is he's not particularly good at any of these things and overtly bad at the defensive part in particular, making him sort of a blah jack-of-all-trades who continually frustrated the Hornets.


Charlotte coach Steve Clifford’s comments after a recent loss to the Lakers may have been tagging Washington."You know how many guys there are in our league that can average 15 or 16 (points) and are no good? Their team never wins when they're out there, and because they score 15 or 16, they stick around for five or six years," Clifford said.

Washington, I'll remind you, is in his fifth season and averaged 15.7 points a game in 2022-23. His defense, in particular, has been invisible for most of the season; the biggest variable in this trade is whether the Mavs can coax him into being a more active, aware force on this end of the floor.

Needless to say, the Mavericks giving up their only real trade asset — their 2027 first-round pick — just to turn Grant Williams into Washington doesn't feel like a big win to me. I get that Washington has more offensive upside that might prove useful in a playoff game, but again, that's been more theoretical. We're talking about a 35.9 percent career 3-point shooter who doesn't rebound or draw fouls. Williams, meanwhile, shoots 37.8 percent from 3 for his career. I get that Washington has more juice on the ball and in the paint, but his True Shooting marks have been 54.2 and 54.5 the last two seasons.

[liam]

I've never been impressed with PJ Washington when I've seen him play. Is this really an upgrade?