A person familiar with the deal said the Houston Rockets traded center Christian Wood, their season leader in points and rebounds, to the Dallas Mavericks for four players and a draft pick.
Boban Marjanovic, Trey Burke, Sterling Brown and Marquese Chriss will go to the Rockets, who will also receive this year’s 26th pick, according to the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the trade was not finalized. has made official.
That won’t happen until the June 23 draft, the person said.
This is a major change for the Mavericks. Wood averaged 17.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.
He was one of nine players to average at least 17 points and 10 boards, joining Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, Denver’s two-time MVP Nikola Jokic, Miami’s Bam Adebayo, Sacramento’s Domantas Sabonis, Jonas Valanciunas of New Orleans, Nikola Vucevic of Chicago and Deandre Ayton of Phoenix.
Wood has one more season left on his three-year, $41 million contract. He revealed to reporters in Houston last week that he had held preliminary talks with the Rockets about an extension, though it’s not known if one side objected or if it was clear it wasn’t in the team’s long-term plans.
Either way, Dallas star Luka Doncic will have another talented option at his side next season. Wood has gotten better at 3-point shooting, shooting 131 last season, matching his total from the previous two seasons combined.
Houston currently has two other first-round draft picks — including the third, with the most viable options being Auburn’s Jabari Smith, Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren or Duke’s Paolo Banchero.
Orlando has the top pick, followed by Oklahoma City, and there is widespread speculation that Banchero will go to the Rockets.
Houston also has the 17th pick, which it acquired from Brooklyn for James Harden in the January 2021 trade.
Wood made 50% of his shots from the field this season, including 39% of his 3-pointers. Dallas will be the 26-year-old center’s seventh team, after passing through Philadelphia, Charlotte, Milwaukee, New Orleans, Detroit and Houston.
His breakthrough began with an eight-game stay with the Pelicans in the 2018-19 season, averaging 16.9 points. He averaged 21 points with the Rockets this season, his first complete as a starter, and appeared in 68 games with Houston, the most of his career.
