Amar’e Stoudemire Six Potential Landing Spots After Buyout

Feb 5, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban behind the bench during the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Sleep Train Arena. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Sacramento Kings 101-78. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks made a bold move in acquiring Rajon Rondo that was supposed to put them over the top in the Western Conference to contend for a title. Things haven’t gone swimmingly yet, as they are still adjusting to Rondo dominating the ball in the starting lineup. Another problem they are having is their depth has worsened a little bit, as they had to trade Brandon Wright and Jae Crowder in the front court to acquire Rondo. Neither played big minutes, but players from the end of the bench are now getting some run that maybe shouldn’t be.

Charlie Villanueva, Greg Smith, Al-Farouq Aminu and Richard Jefferson have all received more minutes since the Rondo trade, and there is an argument that can be made against each one receiving playing time. When Villanueva is you top big off the bench it is hard to say that you are a contender; put Stoudemire into that spot and your outlook is much better.

The Mavericks are lacking much of a scoring punch from anywhere off their bench, as they brought back J.J. Barea to try and bring some life to their backcourt. With Tyson Chandler being reacquired in the offseason, the Mavericks look to be trying to recreate the magic from their NBA Championship season in 2011. If they truly wish to repeat that season, adding Stoudemire would be a step in the right direction.

He would be a nice complement to Dirk Nowitzki offensively, as Nowitzki can dominate the perimeter and midrange while Stoudemire controls the paint. The Chandler-Stoudemire combination didn’t look to work well in New York, but it was more of the trio with Anthony added that clogged things up; when it was just two of the three things looked much better.

Stoudemire would fit well on this veteran laden team, as he will assuredly be looking to latch onto a team with real title aspirations. Of all the teams on this list, the Mavericks are arguably the closest out of any of the six.

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