The Dallas Mavericks leveraged the No. 26 pick in the 2011 NBA Draft to land a proven veteran with a penchant for shooting. Unfortunately, that proven veteran happens to be Rudy Fernandez.
NBA Draft Grades 2011: Mavericks Trade For Rudy Fernandez, Adding To Smarm Factor
Gained: Rudy Fernandez, rights to Petteri Koponen.
Gave up: Rights to Jordan Hamilton.
Synopsis: Hamilton actually seemed like a good pick-up, a lottery talent at a position of need going forward for Dallas. Fernandez? In theory, it sounds good. A shooter who can, like seemingly every other Mavs guard not named Jason Kidd, provide some "instant offense" (just add possessions!). The problem is that Fernandez has been awful off the bench for most of his NBA career, and his shooting has gotten worse and worse every year. The Mavericks don't play a whole lot more up-tempo than the Blazers, and he's not likely to get many more minutes. The chances of this working out really well seem to be rather less than Rudy not helping, and Hamilton being a good young player for the Nuggets.
All the NBA’s a prediction, and mine is that this is not great for Dallas. If Koponen, a Finnish point guard, actually comes over? Burn this post.
Grade: C-.
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