Mavericks

Mavericks trade rumors and news: Anthony Morrow deal all Mavs had in store

There was brief talk of big splashes for the Mavs, but instead they ended up with Anthony Morrow - a strong shooter with a connection to Dwight Howard.

By Rodger Sherman Feb 21, 2013, 3:56pm CST

The Dallas Mavericks didn't make a blockbuster at the trade deadline nor did they dump salary, but they did move to land a potentially useful player -- both on the court and off -- in Anthony Morrow.

Here's Mavs Moneyball's reaction to the trade | Mavs Moneyball's player profile of Anthony Morrow

The Mavs brought in Morrow, a 6'5 shooting guard in his fifth season in the NBA, for Dahntay Jones. Morrow is one of the best shooters in the NBA, as the Georgia Tech product has shot 42.5 percent from deep on his career. He averaged more than 10 points per game each of his first four seasons in the league, but really didn't figure into the Hawks' plans, as they already had Kyle Korver as a shooting specialist. Morrow only got into 24 games, averaging a career-low 5.2 points -- less than half of what he's averaged most of his career.

And the price is relatively cheap: Jones was part of the Darren Collison trade in the offseason, and although he has played in 50 games this year, he is shooting just 35.7 percent from the field. He's a strong defender, but he didn't bring anything on the offensive end.

But Morrow's most important role with the team could be this offseason:

Fwiw #mavs pickup Anthony Morrow and DH12 are big buds. Fwiw.
— mike fisher (@fishsports) February 21, 2013

There likely weren't any salary ramifications, as both players' contracts expire after this season, with Morrow making $4 million while Jones is earning $2.9 million. So much for the bank of Cuban being open.

Earlier, Brandon Jennings and Josh Smith were rumored to be possible targets for Dallas, although neither got traded, and the Mavs were linked to Jordan Crawford, who ended up going to the Celtics. Not the loudest deadline for the Mavericks, but with the playoffs likely out of reach and this year's free agency market the real prize for Dallas, perhaps that's what they needed.