Dallas Mavericks forward Chandler Parsons is playing perhaps the best basketball of his career in the last six weeks, so it seems like he has finally fully recovered from knee surgery. He will be an unrestricted free agent in July, and the Mavericks should do everything they can to keep him. They will have competition, however, from his hometown Orlando Magic and several other teams, via ESPN's Tim MacMahon:
Those close to the situation consider his hometown Magic to be the biggest threat to steal Parsons from the Mavs. With its pre-deadline dealing, Orlando cleared enough cap space to sign two players to max contracts. Sources anticipate that the Magic will aggressively pursue Parsons.
…
The list of teams interested in Parsons will be long, with sources expecting the Miami Heat, Los Angeles Lakers, Brooklyn Nets, New York Knicks, Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets, Denver Nuggets and Magic to be among Parsons' suitors. If Durant leaves Oklahoma City, add the Thunder to the list, with a potential reunion with Parsons' coach at Florida, Billy Donovan.
…
The Mavs should still be considered the favorites in the pending Parsons sweepstakes, as he feels a strong sense of loyalty to Cuban and Dirk Nowitzki, in particular. Parsons also has a close relationship with Rick Carlisle and lobbied for Dallas' head coach to receive the five-year contract extension he signed this fall.
Orlando is obviously gearing itself up for free agency. If it is able to land someone like Parsons and another impact player, then it could all of a sudden be a playoff team next year with the potential to improve as its younger players develop. That's an attractive situation, though it's not necessarily better than what Parsons has in Dallas.
With the Mavericks, Parsons has a complementary wing partner -- assuming he gets healthy -- signed long-term, in Wesley Matthews. He also has one of the best coaches in the league and an owner that a) will do everything he can to make the team a contender, b) "has essentially made Parsons a high-ranking member of the Mavs' front office," per ESPN.
If Dallas' main goal this summer is retaining Parsons, then its biggest challenge is to convince him that it will give him the best chance to win. Since the Mavs missed out on DeAndre Jordan, they don't exactly have a core for the post-Dirk Nowitzki era. Ideally, Parsons will want to be a part of it.
