Dallas, TX
Mailbag: Could Valdes-Scantling battle for WR3?
Kurt: Signed just two days after the draft, the Valdes-Scantling deal did slide in a bit under the radar, but this seems a wise move to add a veteran to the wide receiver room and perhaps even build in a little security in the event the George Pickens situation goes haywire.
Now entering his ninth season, the 6-foot-4, 206-pound Valdes-Scantling certainly brings size and experience. And you’re right, he’s topped 30 catches and 500 receiving yards three times in his career, which includes finishing third on the Chiefs with 687 yards during their 2022 championship season. He also had a touchdown grab in Kansas City’s 2023 Super Bowl victory.
Of course, the last two years have been more nomadic for Valdes-Scantling as he split 2024 between Buffalo and New Orleans and then spent time with both San Francisco and Pittsburgh in 2025. Last season in particular wasn’t exactly pretty, as he battled a calf injury on his way to just 120 receiving yards combined off 14 catches.
Meanwhile, Ryan Flournoy, who is five years younger, enjoyed a breakout effort in his sophomore campaign for the Cowboys, finishing with 40 catches for 475 yards and four touchdowns a season ago. At this point, the team clearly sees him as the first option for that third wideout spot.
So Valdes-Scantling will be in a battle for playing time (and perhaps even a roster spot), but taking a flier on a two-time Lombardi Trophy winner with a contract for less than $1.5 million, and only $187,500 of that guaranteed, made perfect sense. It’s a small investment that could potentially pay big dividends.
We are less than two weeks away from the 2026 NBA Draft, and the Dallas Mavericks are aware of just how vital this draft is for the future of the franchise. They want to build the team around Cooper Flagg, who had a sensational rookie year, and this is their best chance to do so.
They sit with the 9th, 30th, and 48th overall picks, the last two coming in via the Anthony Davis trade they made in February. This gives them multiple swings to build around Flagg.
However, the Mavericks may not be set on picking 9th. According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, “Sources say that the Mavericks, however, have told rival teams that they are very much open for trades in either direction with their No. 9 pick.”
With how deep and talented this draft class is, it shouldn’t be that surprising that they’d be willing to move in either direction. If the right player starts falling down the board, they can jump up a few spots to secure him. Or, if there are multiple good players on the board, and there will be, there will be the option to trade down and accumulate more picks while still getting a good player.
Draft Trade Options for the Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks will have plenty of options for trades in a few weeks, whether they move up or down, or they use their financial flexibility to take on bad contracts and add more picks. That might be the best option to explore, as they have a $20.8 million trade exception and a $6 million exception that expire in February.
They could use those exceptions to take on a larger, bloated salary and add a draft pick or two. They need as much future draft capital as they can possibly get, and if teams are willing to give up any picks in this loaded draft class, even better. A lot of teams are looking to duck under the tax aprons because the penalties are too harsh, so the Mavs can be a facilitator of some of that desperation around the NBA.
Teams like the OKC Thunder and Cleveland Cavaliers are teams looking to shed future money, so they could be an option for that.
They could also look to trade back and take a player like Labaron Philon near the end of the lottery. The Thunder and Hornets have multiple first-round picks and could look to target a forward or center like Aday Mara or Yaxel Lendeborg.
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A 31-year-old woman has been arrested in the Dallas food delivery turned ambush in March, where a man was shot moments after opening his door to an order he said he never placed, officials said.
Dallas police said a man was ambushed at his front door on March 1, around 4:15 p.m. in the 1800 block of Sedona Lane. According to the report, a delivery driver walked a bag of food to the front door while a suspect in dark clothing waited just out of sight near the garage. As soon as the door opened, the suspect rushed in and began shooting.
Dallas police said the suspect made the food order to lure the victim to answer the door and shot him. The victim, who has not been identified, was critically injured.
Officials said the suspect has been identified as Marquita Rice, 31. Rice and the victim are known to one another.
On May 26, U.S. Marshals and the Wake Forest Police Department found Rice in Wake Forest, North Carolina. She was arrested and is in custody at the Wake County jail pending extradition to Dallas County. She is charged with aggravated assault – family violence with a deadly weapon.
She is being held on a $1 million bond.
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