"We didn't like what happened" - Disgruntled Tim Hardaway Sr. confirms Mavericks are shipping his son in the post season
As the Dallas Mavericks' 2024 postseason run to the NBA Finals continued, Tim Hardaway Jr. saw his minutes dwindle. Disappointingly, he became a defensive liability on the court with a limited skillset outside of his shotmaking.
With NBA Free Agency commencing in a few days, his father responded to a fan's comment on Instagram regarding the possibility of his son getting traded this offseason.
"Yes they are," Hardaway Sr. said. "And we want to have a new opportunity to shine. We didn't like what happened. We are ready to go."
Amid the shooting struggles and defensive vulnerabilities, Tim Hardaway Sr. believes that his son could use a fresh start.
His son was originally acquired back on Jan. 31, 2019, from the Knicks. The trade package included Kristaps Porzingis, Courtney Lee and Trey Burke. In exchange, the Mavericks sent Dennis Smith Jr., DeAndre Jordan, Wesley Matthews and two future first-round picks.
NBA analyst criticized Mavericks guard amid finals lowlight
During an episode of "The Stephen A. Smith Show" on June 13, Smith himself criticized Tim Hardaway Jr. for a disappointing Game 3 performance.
"Tim Hardaway Jr., I'm so happy you're under contract for next year," Smith said, "because I don't know if you'd be getting one after this performance. 19 minutes, not a point. ... Tim Hardaway Jr. was so bad that he didn't even register a foul. He had 3 rebounds ... with all of us clamoring for Jason Kidd to place some faith in him and play him."
In a must-win game to garner some momentum in his team's way, the Mavericks guard struggled to contribute scoring-wise as his squad sorely needed his shotmaking.
After only playing eight minutes in the Game 1 loss, his playing time was increased for Game 3 but led to little to no results as he recorded three rebounds and no points or assists.
Hardaway Jr. successfully bounced back in the next game at home, recording 15 points, to give his team some life before they headed back on the road to Boston, where their season eventually came to an end. The Celtics won Game 5 106-88 to win the NBA Finals 4-1
As of now, it remains to be seen what befalls Tim Hardaway Jr.'s future with the Dallas Mavericks in the coming days leading to NBA Free Agency.