Tenth overall pick Cason Wallace is headed to Oklahoma City as part of a trade with the Dallas Mavericks.
Dallas agreed to move down from the 10th overall pick to the 12th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, the price the Mavericks paid to send Davis Bertans to Oklahoma City. Dallas will acquire the Draft rights to Dereck Lively II (12th), while the Thunder will receive the rights to Cason Wallace (10th).
The Mavs also dealt veteran sharpshooter Davis Bertans to the Thunder in the deal.
The Mavericks are trading No. 10 and Davis Bertans to the Thunder for No. 10, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 23, 2023
Nico Harrison's reaction to getting Dereck Lively II at No. 12 after dumping Davis Bertans' contract for No. 10: "I looked at Fin after we made the first move, and it was like, 'Man, that’s exactly what we played out.' The stress level is like, whew. We did that."
— Callie Caplan (@CallieCaplan) June 23, 2023
The Thunder has agreed in principle to acquire the draft rights to Cason Wallace (10th overall) from the Dallas Mavericks. The trade is not yet final. pic.twitter.com/I1Mf54Z5SG
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) June 23, 2023
The Dallas Mavericks have agreed in principle to acquire the draft rights to Dereck Lively II from Oklahoma City in exchange for the draft rights to Cason Wallace in a trade that is not yet final.
— Mavs PR (@MavsPR) June 23, 2023
Lively II gives the Mavericks a sorely needed big man prospect to help balance out a perimeter-heavy roster led by All-NBA superstar Luka Doncic. The trade also frees up additional money and avenues to pursue free agents next month, with incumbent free agent Kyrie Irving headlining the Mavericks’ offseason.
Oklahoma City, meanwhile, acquires another versatile playmaker in Wallace. The 6-foot-2 Kentucky prospect would add a healthy dose of aggressive defense to the young Thunder, who also expect to welcome back last year’s No. 2 overall pick, Chet Holmgren, to the court next season.
That wasn’t the lone trade for Dallas on Draft night, though. Later in the first round, the Mavs agreed in principle to acquire Olivier-Maxence Prosper (the No. 24 pick) from the Sacramento Kings. Per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Kings are dealing veteran center Richaun Holmes with Prosper to the Mavs.
The Dallas Mavericks have agreed in principle to acquire the draft rights to Olivier-Maxence Prosper from Sacramento in a trade that is not yet final.
— Mavs PR (@MavsPR) June 23, 2023
Kings are sending Holmes into the Traded Player Exception created with the OKC trade. https://t.co/L2qVZoQnvA
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 23, 2023
In adding Holmes via a trade and drafting Lively, Dallas has hopefully addressed the interior defense and overall depth issues that marred much of its 2022-23 season.
