The Mavericks have an assortment of question marks about their roster moving forward, but one of them that doesn’t appear to be a mystery is Dwight Powell.
The center/forward will be going into his sixth season and he has a player option to return for the 2019-20 season that will pay him a shade over $10 million.
Free agency always brings with it an element of risk. But Powell took that out of the equation Thursday as the Mavericks went through exit interviews with coaches, front-office staff and media members.
“I definitely want to be here,” Powell said. “The opportunities afforded me here, I’m obviously grateful for that. And it’s given me a chance to be in this league. I want to stay here.”
Essentially, that means that one way or another, Powell will return.
Either he exercises the option on the final season of his four-year contract or he doesn’t pick up that option and a new multiyear deal is reached.
Given the way Powell played this season, it’s a no-brainer for the Mavericks to win to keep him. He was an invaluable asset, particularly during the second half of the season.
After the All-Star break, he averaged 14.8 points and 7.5 rebounds while shooting 62 percent from the field and nearly 40 percent from beyond the arc.
For the season, he averaged 10.6 points and 5.3 rebounds.
“He’s one of our key pieces off the bench so we’re going to do everything in our power to make sure his example, leadership and on-court production stays with the Mavericks for a long time,” general manager and vice president or basketball operations Donnie Nelson said.
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