The LA Clippers have eliminated the Dallas Mavericks from the first round of the playoffs for the second season in a row.
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What's next for the Mavericks?
Upcoming free agents
The Mavericks will have some important decisions to make this offseason.
Luka Doncic, Kristaps Porzingis, Dwight Powell, Dorian Finney-Smith, Maxi Kleber and Jalen Brunson are each under contract for at least one more season, but Tim Hardaway Jr. is set to be an unrestricted free agent at the season's end. Hardaway was the team's third-leading scorer during the regular season with 16.6 points per game. He made a career-best 3.0 3-pointers per game, doing so at a 39.1 percent clip.
In addition to Hardaway, J.J. Redick and Boban Marjanovic will be unrestricted free agents while Nicolo Melli, Nate Hinton and Tyler Bey will each be restricted free agents.
Finally, Josh Richardson has a $11.6 million player option in his contract for the 2021-22 season while Willie Cauley-Stein has a $4.1 million team option in his.
| Unrestricted Free Agent(s) | Restricted Free Agent(s) | Player Option(s) | Team Option(s) |
| Tim Hardaway Jr. | Nicolo Melli | Josh Richardson | Willie Cauley-Stein |
| Boban Marjanovic | Nate Hinton | ||
| JJ Redick | Tyler Bey |
According to RealGM's Keith Smith, the maximum amount of cap space Dallas can create this offseason is $35.4 million.
– Scott Rafferty (@crabdribbles)
The 2021 NBA Draft
The Mavericks do not have any picks in the 2021 NBA Draft.
By way of the 2019 trade that sent Kristaps Porzingis and Tim Hardaway Jr. to Dallas, the New York Knicks will receive the Mavericks' 22nd overall pick in this year's draft.
In acquiring JJ Redick at the trade deadline this season, Dallas sent its 2021 second-round pick to the New Orleans Pelicans.
— Kyle Irving (@KyleIrv_)
Burning questions
What will Luka Doncic's contract extension look like?
The time has come for the 22-year-old superstar to receive his rookie contract extension.
Coming off of an incredible season where he averaged 27.7 points, 8.6 assists and 8.0 rebounds per game, Doncic was able to elevate his play to another level in the postseason. Despite falling to the Clippers in seven games in the first round, the young phenom became the youngest player in NBA history to average 35 points per game in the playoffs.
Under the assumption that Doncic will make one of the three All-NBA teams when they are announced, he will be in line for a max contract extension with the Mavericks.
There isn't much debating here – Doncic will receive the five-year, $195 million max extension that we've recently seen from the likes of Jayson Tatum and Donovan Mitchell. With one more year remaining on his rookie deal, that extension will not kick in until the 2022-23 season.
For Mavericks fans everywhere, here's to Doncic being under contract until the 2027-28 season.
Will the Mavericks re-sign Tim Hardaway Jr.?
Hardaway was solid for the Mavericks all season, but the way he stepped up in the playoffs may make him a few extra bucks.
Although he a rough go in Game 7 against the LA Clippers, the sharpshooting guard still averaged 17.0 points per game while shooting 40.4 percent from beyond the arc. He established himself as a legitimate second scoring option next to Doncic, and with unrestricted free agency approaching the 29-year-old guard this offseason, Dallas has a decision to make.
According to The New York Times' Marc Stein, "there is confidence within the Mavericks' organization in their ability to re-sign Tim Hardaway Jr. in free agency this summer."
But at what price? Will signing Hardaway prevent the Mavericks from pairing Doncic with another potential superstar?
Hardaway will be one of the more interesting signings this upcoming offseason.
— Irving
One key stat
Doncic already has five 40-point games in his postseason career. According to Stathead, that's the 13th-most all-time, tying him with the likes of Charles Barkley, Larry Bird, Kawhi Leonard and Dominique Wilkins. As StatMuse noted, it's also more than the likes of Damian Lillard (4), Tracy McGrady (4), Tim Duncan (4) and Kyrie Irving (3).
Luka has 5 40-point playoff games. That’s more than:
— StatMuse (@statmuse) June 6, 2021
Damian Lillard
Carmelo Anthony
Tracy McGrady
Kyrie Irving
Paul Pierce
Ray Allen
Vince Carter
Tim Duncan
Karl Malone
Doncic has played only 13 career playoff games. The players above have played at least 50. pic.twitter.com/K62BXTVaEi
Reminder: Doncic is 22 years old and has appeared in only 13 playoff games to this point of his career. Yeah, he's special.
— Rafferty
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