The Dallas Mavericks made a massive deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, shipping out Luka Doncic in a move that nobody saw coming. Anthony Davis is now a Maverick, and Doncic will now be the face of the Lakers for the next decade. But they weren’t done there, and their next move just pleased Boston Celtics fans.
Just a couple of days after trading Doncic to the Lakers, the Mavs struck a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. According to Shams Charania of ESPN, the Mavs have traded Quentin Grimes and the Sixers’ own 2025 second-round pick back to Philadelphia in exchange for Caleb Martin.
Now, Celtics fans can rejoice.
Mavericks trade for Caleb Martin will make Celtics fans happy
Barring another Dallas run to the Finals, the Celtics will not have to face off against Martin in the playoffs again this year. Needless to say, that’s a situation that most Bostonians won’t want to deal with.
Martin was the driving force that led the Miami Heat in defeating the Celtics in the 2023 Eastern Conference finals. He even hurt them on Christmas this year, too, nailing seven threes to help Philadelphia upset the Celtics in Boston.
Now, he’s in the opposite conference and can’t give the Celtics nightmares unless they meet in the Finals.
But outside of that fact, there’s an important question—why would the Mavs make this trade?
Are they trying to double down on Nico Harrison’s defense-first idea? Do they just really like Martin? Are they not a fan of Grimes?
Statistically, Grimes has had a better season than Martin this year. In 47 appearances, Grimes has averaged 10.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists while shooting 46.3% from the floor and 39.8% from behind the three-point line.
Meanwhile, Martin has played in 31 games, averaging 9.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 43.5% from the field and 37.9% from distance.
Also, Grimes is only 24 years old, and Martin is 29. And the Mavs gave the 76ers a pick in the deal, too. It just doesn’t make any sense.
Obviously, this deal isn’t nearly as bad as the Doncic trade. Nothing ever will be. But just a couple of days after that disaster, the Mavs just made another trade that is extremely questionable. It’s been a very embarrassing few days for Harrison.
For the Celtics, it’s nice to see Martin in the West, but for the Mavs, the questions have begun to pile up even more.