O.J. Mayo Writes On Twitter He Will Sign With The Dallas Mavericks

 

Dallas Gets Some Much Needed Scoring Help With O.J. Mayo (Andy Lyons/Getty Images North America)

The summer isn’t turning out too bad for the Dallas Mavericks after all. The team lost out on the Deron Williams pursuit to the Brooklyn Nets and also saw their guards Jason Terry and Jason Kidd depart to sign with the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks respectively. However, things seem to be turning around for Mark Cuban’s team. O.J. Mayo let everyone know through his twitter earlier tonight that he will be signing with Dallas.

O.J. Mayo To Sign With Dallas Mavericks, Writes On Twitter – SI.com

Picking up Mayo isn’t bad at all for the Mavericks, especially being that it comes after adding veterans Darren Collison, Dahntay Jones,  Elton Brand and Chris Kaman. Mayo is young, athletic and he’s a scorer. He averaged 12.6 points last season with the Memphis Grizzlies. I would imagine that he’s going to return to a starting role after spending the last couple of seasons as a sixth man. None of these moves were the big slpash Dallas was looking to make this summer, however they are solid moves that will help out their star Dirk Nowitzki. Terms of the deal weren’t immediately disclosed.

Links & Layups: Dallas Mavericks Finally Sign Some Players, Pacers Looking At Gerald Green, Will The Knicks Match For Landry Fields?

Should The Knicks Match Toronto’s Offer For Landry Fields? (Image By: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images North America)

• The Dallas Mavericks are about set to add Chris Kaman to their team, according to Marc Stein of ESPN. Kaman also confirmed as much on twitter. Kaman is solid at center, he averaged 13.1 points and 7.7 rebounds for the New Orleans Hornets last season after coming over from the Clippers in the Chris Paul trade. Dallas is going to give him a one year deal, which bascially means their expecting him to hold down the middle for this season while Dallas continues to maintain cap space for next summer’s free agent shopping spree. I still have to wonder what Dirk Nowitzki thinks of what’s going on or not going on in Dallas with his team?

 

• Dallas then hooked up with the Indiana Pacers on a trade. The Pacers sent Darren Collison and Dahntay Jones to the Mavericks for center Ian Mahinmi. The deal for Mahinmi is a sign-and-trade who gets 4 years and $16 million from it. Dallas comes out good here because their getting two more quality players with expiring contracts. I’m not sure where the logic here was for Indiana on this move.They are now thin at point guard and they Mahinmi gets a good amout of money to backup Roy Hibbert. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Pacers have another move their planning. Point guard DJ Augustine is rumored to be on their radar.

 

•  The Pacers did make another move, their reportedly going to offer Gerald Green a 3-year, $10 million contract. That seems like a lot for Green, however he’s coming off a solid season with the Nets and everyone knows he;s one of the more exciting finishers in the league. That kind of cash was too rich for the Nets blood, however if Green can build on his numbers it could turn out to be a nice low-key pickup by the Pacers.

 

• Landry Fields signed the 3-year offer sheet he received from the Toronto Raptors. The ball is now in the New York Knicks court to match the offer. When I first saw that Toronto offered Fields that much, I was pretty sure there was no way the Knicks would match it. Fields has struggled to find success since the Knicks traded for Carmelo Anthony and last season he was practically invisible at times. However, the Knicks do have a question mark at the shooting guard position. JR Smith just re-signed and is on board, however Iman Shumpert wont be ready to start the season because of his torn ACL. If Toronto says the Knicks truly are thinking about matching the offer, I can see the logic in it. That’s a lot for Fields though.

For Lamar Odom It’s Definitely Unfinished Business

~ Lamar Odom decided to pull himself out of consideration for Team USA. At the press conference re-introducing him as a Los Angeles Clipper, Odom described his return to the team that drafted him as a feeling of unfinished business. Odom’s main reason for deciding to pass on a chance to play in the Olympics this summer is because he wants to continue getting ready for the upcoming season. His career as Clipper from 1999-2003 was indeed filled with more low points than high points. However, the real unfinished business for Odom is that he’s looking to revive his NBA career after a nightmare season in Dallas. 

It’s well documented by now what Odom went through the last 12 months. His personal struggles off the court were a big reason he wasn’t prepared for the season when it did finally start after the lockout ended. Then the Lakers tried to trade him and it hurt his feelings. Odom ended up in Dallas physically, however mentally he wasn’t anywhere near there. His season and his time in Dallas ended not from injury, it ended because his heart simply wasn’t in the game.

 It’s a great pickup for the Clippers if Odom can get back to playing at the type of level that won him the Sixth Man of The Year award with the Lakers. Hopefully Odom can take full advantage of the situation presented to him.

Decisions, Decisions.Toronto Raptors Reportedly In Hot Pursuit of Steve Nash

~ Steve Nash has a table full of options to consider. The 38-year old point guard appears to be loving every second of free agency and what comes up with it. What it has done for Nash is give him an interesting scenario to consider for next season. Nash reportedly has received a contract offer from the Toronto Raptors for 3 years at $36 million, according to ESPN.com’s Marc Stein.

 That offer is going to sit on the table for Nash as he is expected to field offers from the Brooklyn Nets, Dallas Mavericks, and quite possibly the New York Knicks. What to do? What to Do?

 Toronto is clearly playing the hometown card here as Nash is from Canada. That 3rd year they tacked on to that contract offer makes it a more appealing option for Nash to consider. The  Nets, Mavs are currently looking to see what happens with Deron Williams while the Knicks situation will depend on their negotiations with Jeremy Lin. The scenarios are endless here as for which direction Nash goes in based on the free agent point guard market.

 It would be wrong to count out the team Nash has played for so long with, the Phoenix Suns. They could very well step up to the plate and attempt to re-sign Nash.

 Money is going to be large factor in this situation for Nash, however the chance to win at this stage in his career should also be at the top of his list. I don’t see that happening with Toronto, although he’d be a major upgrade to their team. He says he’s willing to listen if any team expresses interest and he’s clearly doing just that.