Former Dallas Mavericks forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper is arguably having the best month of his NBA career with the Memphis Grizzlies, and the Mavericks are paying big time for letting him go, allowing for an injured Dante Exum to take his spot.
Nico Harrison's plan to take a risk on Exum imploded before he even played a game with the Mavericks this year, as Exum needed knee surgery, and it became pretty clear that he was not going to play a single game with Dallas all season long. Dallas had to waive Prosper to make room for Exum, and this decision is looking worse by the game.
Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley thankfully took care of Harrison's mess and traded Exum to the Washington Wizards, along with another injury-prone player, Anthony Davis. But Exum isn't the meat and potatoes of the story here. Prosper has been playing his best ball of the season with Memphis, and possibly his whole career.
Mavericks should have never let Olivier-Maxence Prosper go
The former Marquette forward is averaging 14 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in February. Most of that has to do with the Grizzlies having half of their team injured. The Grizzlies have actually been injured for most of the season, but O-Max is taking full advantage of his opportunity to receive increased playing time.
The Grizzlies have a case to make Prosper a part of their long-term plans. Even though he's on a two-way contract, his increased use as a stretch four is making a heck of a resume for his time in Memphis. Hopefully, that continues into a standard contract this summer. With Cooper Flagg and Naji Marshall more involved in the Mavs' picture, O-Max's fate in Dallas was pretty much decided.
The Mavs are known for making bad mistakes in the last year. Right after Luka Doncic was infamously traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, Harrison traded away Quentin Grimes just a few days later. Grimes was a thriving 3-and-D player, playing some of the best ball in his career. The Grimes trade hit rock bottom after the 76ers signed him to a new contract last summer.
Exum was a decent player who rose in the big moments. He got respectable minutes in the 2023-24 season. He hit a buzzer-beating three to tie the game against Houston back in 2024. The Mavs eventually won that game in overtime. The injuries were what set Exum apart from the rest of his teammates. He could've continued to be a nice piece, but he kept getting injured and wasn't reliable.
It's going to take a while to clean up Harrison's mess, but having Flagg along with a lottery pick in 2026 may be the beginning of the end of that mess. O-Max was a nice, young piece for the team, and while it made sense to let him go at the time, Exum's time in Dallas is over, while O-Max is thriving with Memphis.
It's not the end of the world that Prosper is no longer in Dallas, but with Exum not even a member of the Mavs anymore, the decision to let him go looks like a failing grade when we look back on it. If he keeps on thriving in Memphis, he may be on his way to a standard contract with the Grizzlies.