Mavericks whiff on Quentin Grimes, then a shifty shooter, as free agency backcourt plans fall apart

The Dallas Mavericks entered the offseason needing shooters to space the floor around Cooper Flagg. They targeted two guards, but walked away with nothing.

The chase started with Quentin Grimes. Dallas traded him to Philadelphia for Caleb Martin last February, right after former GM Nico Harrison sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers and got fired. 

Grimes made that trade look bad immediately. He averaged 21.9 points and 4.5 assists over the final 28 games of that season for the Sixers. After playing last year on an $8.7 million qualifying offer, Grimes just agreed to a four-year, $60 million contract with the Lakers, reuniting him with Doncic. 

With Quentin Grimes off the board, the Mavs reportedly pivoted to Anfernee Simons, a shifty 6-foot-3 combo guard who averaged 21 points a game over his last three years as a Portland starter.

New GM Mike Schmitz coached in Portland during Simons' rise there, so Dallas had plenty of motivation to get a deal done. According to Marc Stein of The Stein Line, the Mavs emerged as top suitors alongside Golden State and Miami. Having the full $15 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception, Dallas actually had more spending power than either rival could offer. This background makes it even harder to believe that their backcourt push fell apart.

Philadelphia landed Jaylen Brown for Paul George on Wednesday, then used its exception money to secure Anfernee Simons on a two-year, $12.3 million deal Thursday. Marc Stein reported that Simons chose the 76ers over interest from Dallas. 

The Mavericks still have their mid-level exception and are reportedly pivoting toward a trade for Pistons guard Marcus Sasser. For a front office that just missed its top two backcourt targets in a single week, the pressure to find a shooter is building fast.

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