While the Luka Doncic trade is still leaving a bitter taste with the Dallas Mavericks' fanbase over a year later, Daniel Gafford has not been himself since the Doncic trade, and it's starting to get noticeable ahead of the trade deadline.
Gafford was a key piece in the pick-and-roll game for Doncic, where Gafford would be fed easy buckets on lobs and entry passes. Coming in from the trade with the Washington Wizards seemed like an easy move for the Mavericks, as they waited long for some big man help. Christian Wood, who was a massive failure the year before, seemed like an immediate afterthought thanks to Gafford's instant rise.
Since the Doncic trade, Gafford hasn't been the same. Sure, he's been dealing with an ankle sprain that has cut his season short and won't leave him alone. He hasn't been the same since that injury, which he suffered in training camp, and it's taken him a long time to get adjusted to Dallas' new style of play. He isn't the dream fit on the Mavericks that he once was, and most of this points directly at Luka Doncic not being his point guard anymore.
Daniel Gafford still hasn't recovered from losing Luka Doncic
Injuries have killed the Mavs for the last two seasons, and it hasn't helped that Dereck Lively II and Anthony Davis have missed significant time as well. The pressure has been on Gafford to play in games this season, even through injuries, to keep Dallas' season alive, and it hasn't worked out.
Doncic worked extremely well with Lively II and Gafford as his big men, as Doncic was always able to find his big men rolling to the rim on any screen and from any angle. Gafford was the perfect guy to trade for in 2024, largely in part to Doncic's ability to elevate any big man. Gafford's high shooting percentage at the rim helped out the Mavs a lot, and he looked to be an even more reliable offensive player than a defensive asset.
But it appears his time in Dallas is slowly dwindling. Trade rumors around Gafford have been around since the trade deadline last season, and this season has been one of the worst of his career.
Gafford came to Dallas as one of the league's elite shot blockers, answering what Dallas was missing for a long time, which was defense. Gafford, on offense, made an immediate impact by almost breaking one of the NBA's most prestigious records.
Wilt Chamberlain holds the record for consecutive shots made without a miss with 35, which was back in 1967. That same type of efficient offense and low-post dominance isn't at all what Gafford's been showing this season. Instead, his off-and-on injuries have been the story of the season for him, and it's not out of the picture at all to see him get traded before the deadline.
Moussa Cisse has been a nice piece to combat Gafford's struggles, but that hasn't shown enough to make up for Gafford's shortcomings. Gafford is not the same player he was two years ago, and with D'Angelo Russell potentially getting traded at the deadline, Gafford may not be behind him.
Gafford works well with someone who thrives in the pick and roll, and the Mavericks have mostly abandoned this style of play with Doncic gone and Kyrie Irving out of the lineup. Dallas went from one of the best fits in the NBA for him to one of the worst, and he has to be wishing that Doncic was still in town.
There were rumors about Doncic and Gafford joining forces with the Los Angeles Lakers back last summer, and there's even a possibility that he ends up there over the next few days. The Mavs could end up getting a decent return package for such a trade, but Mavs fans wouldn't necessarily like the thought of the Lakers stealing another Mavericks fan favorite.