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Update, July 20: Ferrell reportedly backs out of deal with Mavs
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The Dallas Mavericks are making sure one of their young, talented players stays in the fold and are working to keep their franchise icon from going anywhere, too.
According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon and Yahoo Sports’ Shams Charania, the Mavs have an agreement in place with guard Yogi Ferrell on a two-year contract. In addition, Mavs all-time leading scorer Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavs are making plans to finalize a one-year deal with the former Finals MVP, Charania writes.
Last week, the Mavs rescinded Ferrell’s qualifying offer, which made him an unrestricted free agent. However, that move was just a formality, MacMahon writes, as the sides were in the final stages of working out the new deal (which costs Dallas slightly less in annual salary).
Here’s more from Charania on the deal Ferrell and the Mavs reached:
Free agent guard Yogi Ferrell has agreed to a two-year, $5.3 million deal to return to the Dallas Mavericks, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
Ferrell returned to the Mavericks with the promise of being the backup shooting guard next season, league sources said. The second season of his deal includes a trigger date on July 7, league sources said.
Ferrell, 25, earns a two-year contract after spending his first two NBA seasons with the Mavericks and Brooklyn Nets. He joined the Mavericks on a 10-day contract in January 2017, one month after the Nets waived him. Ferrell was an instant success, and had a performance of 32 points and nine 3-pointers against the Portland Trail Blazers on Feb. 3, 2017, leading to a two-year deal.
Last season, Ferrell averaged 10.2 points, three assists and 2.5 rebounds per game as he started 21 of 82 games played for Dallas.
Per both ESPN and Yahoo Sports, the Mavs are expected to use the remaining salary cap room they have to give Nowitzki a contract. Here’s more from Charania on that deal:
In what could be Dirk Nowitzki’s final NBA season, the future Hall of Famer and the Dallas Mavericks plan to finalize a one-year, $5 million deal, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
Nowitzki and the Mavericks are not in a rush to sign the contract, but Nowitzki remains a Maverick for life. The Mavericks and guard Yogi Ferrell agreed to a two-year, $5.3 million deal on Thursday, leaving the team with $5 million in salary cap space to re-sign Nowitzki.
In late June, Nowitzki and the Mavs mutually opted out of his contract for next season to give Dallas more room to make moves in free agency. The Mavs made a sizable splash in free agency this summer as they added former All-Star center DeAndre Jordan.
Nowitzki, who has played his entire NBA career with Dallas, became the first international member of the NBA’s 30,000-point club in 2017. He is the team’s all-time leader in points scored, games played, rebounds, blocks, field goals made and attempted, free throws made and attempted and 3-pointers made and attempted.
The Mavericks haven’t won a playoff series since taking the title almost seven years ago, cycling through dozens of roster moves to try to give Nowitzki another shot at a title.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
