One of the biggest concerns for the Dallas Mavericks this offseason was to find a point guard to fill the void that was left by Luka Doncic’s departure to Los Angeles. While GM Nico Harrison and Co. did try to do that by handing out Kyrie Irving a new three-year deal and acquiring the likes of D’Angelo Russell and Dante Exum, the truth is that these moves haven’t solved the franchise’s problem. With Irving yet to recover from his ACL injury and Russell and Exum being average at best, Dallas is still in the same position they were at the start of the summer. They are short in the backcourt.

The solution? Well, even though Kyrie Irving is a great option, he won’t be seeing the court anytime soon, so the Mavs front office will have to make a move, and they might have just been presented the right opportunity. This comes after a long summer where Atlanta Hawks superstar Trae Young seemed to be destined to a move away from the city, but after a major haul, it seemed like the 26-year-old might just stay after all. Only for his future to be in the air once again.

That’s because even though the Hawks have built a young core that seems to be complementing Young, he’s only got the upcoming season and has a player option for the 2026-27 season left of his five-year $215 million deal. While he’s eligible for a four-year $229 million extension, which could go up to a whopping $345 million over five years if he can get an All-NBA nod this year, the Hawks are reluctant to offer him an extension. Due to this, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon thinks that Young’s future may not be in Atlanta.

“The long-term outlook for Trae Young in Atlanta is murky at the minimum at this point. This is the guy who has been the face of the Atlanta Hawks for seven years. He’s averaged 25 and 10. You know, just led the league in assists. You know, his offensive production has been elite. 
But there are question marks about whether this is going to, you know, be a long-term marriage,” he said. Those question marks may mean there is an elite, high-scoring guard in the market that may align perfectly with the Mavericks’ needs.

Not only that, this will be a full circle moment for the four-time NBA All-Star who was drafted into the league as the 5th overall pick by Dallas, but was later traded for the Hawks’ No. 3 pick and the player he’ll replace in Texas, Luka Doncic. Even though there are several doubts surrounding Trae Young’s defensive capabilities, if there’s a team and a coach who knows how to hide those flaws and help him flourish, it’s the Mavericks and Jason Kidd. But, is there actually a way that the storied franchise can afford Trae Young?

What will it take for the Dallas Mavericks to land Trae Young?

While the idea of Trae Young heading to Dallas to team up with Anthony Davis, Cooper Flagg, and the rest of the Dallas Mavericks team seems great, until you get into the details of how much it will cost the Mavs. That’s because Dallas already has a huge wage bill, having dished out new deals to Kyrie Irving and PJ Washington. So, if they want to bring in Young ahead of next season, that will require them to at least sacrifice one of their big-name players to even make the financials work.

This could be a huge roadblock for them in their pursuit of the superstar point guard. However, if Nico Harrison and Co. could wait out the upcoming season, Young could then opt out of his player option for the 2026-27 season and become a free agent, allowing him to negotiate a new deal with the Mavs. While it still won’t be easy, given that the 26-year-old is not going to settle for less than what he could get by staying with the Atlanta Hawks, which could be upward of $57 million, bit too much for Dallas to accommodate.

Nonetheless, if Young truly makes up his mind to head to Northern Texas and the Dallas-based organization is also interested, then it’s not too far-fetched to think that a deal could be worked out– even though it might require Nico Harrison and Co. to cut out a few players from their roster. But, it could all be worth it for them in the long run, given that Trae Young could not only replace Luka Doncic but also start a new era alongside Cooper Flagg. So, this should be a deal for everyone to keep an eye on in the coming times.