Mavs Swap Down To 24; Four Pinpointed Targets?

    The Mavs have swapped down in the first round, giving up No. 22 in Thursday's NBA Draft in exchange for Portland's pick at 24th, plus a pair of second-rounders.  

This trade -- which gives Dallas the 56th pick in this year's draft and the worst of Portland's second-round picks in 2010 -- would seem to indicate that the Mavs are telling the truth when they tell us there is a grouping of guys worthy of selecting in this range. ... and that their conversations with other teams has guided them into knowledge of who likes whom. 

We also think it indicates (again) that Donnie Nelson is fibbing about this being a “Futures Draft’’ … thought we're going to fudge on that in a moment.

And one more thing: What, exactly, is the value of the 56th pick in a supposed "weak'' draft? Maybe having a second-round pick is a building block to an ensuing deal -- Mark notes that they can "come in handy,'' which almost sounds like a sly hint. But if not ... Dallas just swapped down for a bag of magic beans.

Well, two bags of magic beans.

Do the Mavs believe there are “a handful’’ of second-half-of-the-first-round draftables who can be rotation players on a playoff team, as we wrote this morning? Hey, if they didn’t believe it, we wouldn’t have written it! Furthermore, they are right – and you only have to look at last June to prove it. Lopez, Hibbert, Hill, Batum, Anderson, Lee, Arthur and Anderson. That’s EIGHT guys.

So yeah. There are a handful of helpers. The trick, of course, isn’t just knowing that … but in knowing which ones are which.

Now to the names, a four-pack of them ... who we think the Mavs think might have been there at No. 22 and might still be there at No. 24. ... in order of (we think) preference:

 1. Eric Maynor, PG, VCU – Mavs insiders view him as an instant contributor as a backup point guard. He can score in a big way, he’s a leader, he’s versatile, and he fits the Dallas profile in that he was a four-year guy. A 6-2 speedster, he has a great chance to be an Aaron Brooks-type pro. Can he really last until the 20's?

2. Terrence Williams, SG, Louisville – Another Mavscentric view: He’d beat out Antoine Wright as the starting 3-guard TODAY. That while he’s not a scorer (at all), he’s a defensive stopper who is better at that job than AW. There is a thought that at 6-6, 215, he’s so strong defensively that he can guard the 1, 2 and 3. … and that he might have a little Ron Artest in him. There's the upside, I guess. Maybe that’s why some mocks have him in the Lotto. But it’s why Dallas sure wishes he’d drop. Oh, and he’s another four-year guy.

3. Marcus Thornton, SG, LSU – We get wild vibes both ways here. … that Dallas likes the 6-3 SEC star so much that he’s one of the guys who got a one-on-one workout visit. … but that at the same time there is a belief that he’ll be available well after 22. That's what we were told privately on Wednesday morning. And then on Wednesday afternoon, Dallas slips down just two spots. Hmmm. Oh, and guess what? He’s a four-year guy. (Are you sensing a trend here?)

4. Nick Calathes, PG, Florida – The Mavs really, really like him. But some say he may be bound for some years in Europe. If Dallas takes him, they get a 6-5 PG they believe will eventually be an NBA contributor. … but the emphasis would be on eventually. And, if they take him -- along with the longshots that are second-round picks in general -- it’ll mean Donnie was telling the truth about his “Futures’’ view – whether we like it or not.

Which, by the way, we don’t.

But to the point: The Mavs came in believing that the guys from around 12 to 25 are on somewhat of a plateau with one another, and that a line could be drawn after No. 25. They made a deal that keeps them above that water line. Now we wait on an ensuing deal. ... or to see if their waterline judgment is correct.