Free agent wing Wes Matthews agreed to a four-year deal with the Dallas Mavericks, according to David Aldridge. After DeAndre Jordan decommitted from Dallas, Matthews’ contract went up from $57 million to $70 million over four years. Matthews turned down a reported four-year, $65 million offer from the Sacramento Kings.
Wes Matthews gets $13 million pay raise after DeAndre Jordan stays with Clippers
He turned down a lucrative offer from the Kings to join Dallas.
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Matthews was set for his largest-ever payday before he tragically ruptured his Achilles in early March. It could not have possibly been a worse time for him or the Blazers: he was in the midst of a great season and Portland had hopes of advancing deep in the playoffs.
With his rehab dragging into the summer, Matthews’ free agency was tricky. An Achilles injury might be the worst muscle injury a player can suffer in sports and no amount of rehab can guarantee a player will return the same way he was prior to the incident.
Sadly, prior to the Achilles injury, Matthews was one of the healthiest players in the NBA, playing every game in four out of his six NBA seasons to date. He’s a two-way guard from San Antonio who turns 29 in October, with a deadly three-point shot and an all-around game to match.
Before going down, Matthews was averaging 16 points on 45 percent shooting while nailing 39 percent of his three-pointers with seven attempts per game. That’s almost identical to his career averages of 14 points, 45 percent shooting, 39 percent on threes and five longball attempts per game.
Dallas was the first team to meet with Matthews when free agency opened Tuesday night and preferred to sign with them over the Kings or the Raptors, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein. While the Achilles injury is concerning, the Mavericks brought well-respected trainer Casey Smith with them to the meeting and see Matthews as a necessary risk to build their team. Matthews also may be the player that makes or breaks DeAndre Jordan’s decision.
With Monta Ellis leaving town, a healthy Matthews will start as a more traditional shooting guard providing shooting and defense.
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