The Dallas Mavericks are reportedly shopping for a big man this off-season and are among the teams who are planning to make a qualifying offer to Los Angeles Lakers center/power forward Pau Gasol once the 2014 NBA free agency kicks off this July. How far the Mavs are willing to go in bringing the 7-foot Spaniard to Big D will depend largely on his price tag according to recent reports. The two time NBA champion and Olympic gold medalist, who earned $19.3 million from the Lakers last season, however, is wiling to make a discount as long as it is for the price of contending for another NBA championship.
The Mavs are also eying Wizards big man Marin Gortat, whom they have been courting since the 2009 free agency, but fear that they will be outbid by the Wizards, who have significant salary cap room and are expected to make an attractive offer to the Polish Hammer after their recent success in the playoffs - the Wizards reached the playoffs after 5 years and advanced in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs with Gortat manning the middle and anchoring the team's defense.
Gasol, meanwhile, could chose Dallas over LA if the Lakers fail to create a roster that is of championship caliber this summer. Although the Mavs were eliminated in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs last season, they did manage to take San Antonio to Game 7 and gave them quite the scare. The Mavs also enter this off-season with slightly more than $30 million in salary-cap space that will allow them to make significant roster improvements with key free agent signings in a free agency class teeming with big names like Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James.
Dirk has also repeatedly made it known in the past that he is willing to take a pay cut as long as it means bringing in another star to Big D. With that being said, the Mavs have enough cap space to pursue Gasol even if they manage to bring in the seven time all-star Carmelo Anthony. If this happens, the team will have a formidable front court in Anthony, Dirk, and Gasol along with other key players in Monta Ellis and Jose Calderon. This would surely bolster Dallas's chances of adding a second title to their franchise.
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