DALLAS (105.3 The Fan) - The Dallas Mavericks made a major move at the buzzer of last week's NBA Trade deadline, acquiring sharpshooter JJ Redick and forward Nicolo Melli from the New Orleans Pelicans, in exchange for James Johnson, Wes Iwundu, and a second-round pick.
With the Move, Dallas was able to secure an elite shooting threat to put next to their superstar, Luka Doncic, in hopes of opening up an already dangerous offensive attack -- Something the Mavericks have sorely needed throughout an inconsistent season.
"We feel like we’ve definitely upgraded in terms of shooting," Mavs GM Donnie Nelson told the media on Friday. "I think we were also looking for a little bit of a different look. I think JJ [Redick] obviously is no stranger to playoff intensity and big shots in big moments. To put another shooter next to Luka [Dončić] is really important for us."
One half of the Mavs trade haul, Nicolo Melli, was able to join the team this past weekend for the team's 112-103 loss to the Pelicans.
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However, it will be some time before the Mavs are able to reap the benefits of their shooting upgrade, with Redick still recovering from a heel injury that has kept him sidelined since the early days of March.
“With JJ, it’s a little bit different. That’s something where Casey [Smith] has had a relationship with him from USA Basketball and is communicating with him. We want to make sure that heel is 100% and so that’s more of a situation we’re going to have a chance to maybe have him workout and then slowly, when it’s comfortable, to integrate and come to Dallas.”
The term 'slowly' might now be exactly what Mavs fans want to hear in terms of Redick's timeline. However, once he is ready to go and able to operate at full health, Redick should provide a dynamic asset to the Mavs rotation for the team's second-half push in the Western Conference Standings.
I think he’s really excited. He told me Luka [Dončić] is one of his favorite players and Luka had a chance to exchange some texts with him, as did Dirk [Nowitzki]. I think he’s pretty excited about coming to Dallas.”