Mavericks Should Reconsider Spencer Dinwiddie Reunion

Dallas Mavericks are having a pretty tough time this season. Their star guard, Kyrie Irving, is out with a hamstring injury until mid-January, which is a big deal. That leaves them needing some serious backcourt help, you know? And guess what? Sports Illustrated thinks they should look at a familiar face: Spencer Dinwiddie. Yeah, the same guy they pretty much gave up on last year.

A Familiar Face in a Time of Need

Dalton Ross, a writer for SI, dropped this idea on January 2, 2026. He’s arguing the Mavericks should go after Dinwiddie for a reunion trade. The NBA trade deadline is coming up fast on February 6. It kind of makes sense when you look at Dallas’s situation. Dinwiddie, who’s 32 now, was actually a pretty key piece for the Mavs during their 2022 NBA Finals run. He put up a solid 17.8 points off the bench in those playoffs. That was a good run for him here, for sure.

But then, things just changed, you know? The team had signed him to a three-year, $27 million deal back in August 2022. But by February 7, 2025, the Mavericks waived him. You can see it clear as day on the NBA.com transaction log. His role just kept shrinking. Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving were really dominating the ball then. Dinwiddie’s numbers dipped to just 6.2 points in only 17.4 minutes per game that season. Dallas basically decided to move on. Now, with Kyrie sidelined and the team sitting at a 20-15 record, maybe they’re thinking, “What if we brought him back?” They need to keep winning to stay competitive.

Dinwiddie’s Present with the Purple and Gold

So, where is Spencer Dinwiddie these days? He’s playing for the Los Angeles Lakers. He signed a one-year, $3.3 million contract with them on July 22, 2025. He’s mostly a bench guard there, kind of playing behind guys like Austin Reaves and Gabe Vincent. The Lakers are sitting at an 18-17 record as of January 1, 2026. So they’re in a similar spot to the Mavs, trying to figure things out.

Dinwiddie’s stats this season aren’t exactly blowing anyone away. Through January 1, 2026, he’s played 32 games. He’s averaging 7.1 points, 2.8 assists, and 2.1 rebounds in 18.2 minutes per game. He’s shooting 36.4% from three-point range. It’s not his career best, but it’s pretty decent. His career averages are 13.6 PPG, 5.7 APG, and 40.2% from deep. So, he can still make shots when he needs to.

Here’s a quick look at his current season numbers:

Source: ESPN.com and NBA.com stats pages, last updated January 2, 2026

Lakers GM Rob Pelinka said on December 30, 2025, that they’re “evaluating all options.” But he also made a point about focusing on “health and chemistry” for the team. So, no official word on Dinwiddie being on the trade block. But his contract is expiring, which makes him “trade-friendly,” according to CBS Sports. He probably wouldn’t cost a whole lot.

Is a Reunion Really Possible?

Right now, this is all just talk, you know? There aren’t any confirmed trade talks between the Mavericks and Lakers about Dinwiddie. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski even tweeted on January 1, 2026, that the “Lakers monitoring backcourt tweaks, but nothing imminent.” So, don’t go holding your breath for anything concrete just yet. Yahoo Sports also kind of echoed the SI speculation, but they called it opinion, which it totally is at this point.

The Athletic, in a paywalled update by Shams Charania on December 28, 2025, did mention Dinwiddie as one of the “movable contracts” for the Lakers. The Western Conference is super tight, so teams are always looking for any little edge. For the Mavericks, a guard like Dinwiddie could bring a veteran presence. He knows the system, at least from before. He’s played with Luka. And he can create his own shot when needed.

The big question is, would the Mavericks truly want to bring back a player they “completely gave up on” just a year ago? And would Dinwiddie even want to return to a place that let him go? It’s a pretty tricky situation. But with the trade deadline less than a month away, stranger things have definitely happened in the NBA. The Mavericks really need to figure out their backcourt situation fast, you know? Kyrie’s coming back, but they can’t just bank on that. Maybe Dinwiddie is a cheap, familiar option worth considering. It’s something to watch, for sure, as the deadline approaches.