The Dallas Mavericks need a point guard after signing DeAndre Jordan to an $80 million deal. According to ESPN's Marc Stein, the team is firmly in the mix for Jeremy Lin.
Dallas doesn't have much wiggle room under the salary cap. The team reportedly hopes to sign both J.J. Barea and Lin, but it might require each player to take a pay cut. Dallas has a $2.8 million exception currently, and could create a $2.6 million salary cap spot by using the stretch provision on Raymond Felton. It's also possible they could find a team willing to take on Felton's $4-million contract.
Lin spent last year with the Lakers, averaging 11.2 points and 4.6 assists for the season. He's known as a good pick-and-roll offensive player but is prone to turnovers and isn't a great defender.
However, for the Mavericks, who were planning to go cheap at point guard anyway, Lin's a great fit. Dallas needs a slashing guard to help generate opportunities for Jordan and Lin posted his best shooting season last year, too, hitting 38 percent of his three-point shots in Los Angeles. If Dallas can convince Lin to join them cheaply for a season and rebuild his falling value, he'll have a great opportunity to make money next summer when the salary camp jumps up.
Lin has ties to the Mavericks, who signed him as an undrafted free agent to their summer league team in 2010. He's also good friends with Chandler Parsons, who he was teammates with on the Rockets two seasons ago.
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