Nico Harrison's rumored next cold-blooded move will reshape Mavericks' playoff plans

With only five games left before the Dallas Mavericks' regular season comes to a close, the team is scrambling to secure home-court advantage in the first round of the Play-In Tournament. Assuming Dallas can secure a home-court advantage for the first game of the Play-In, it would give the Mavs a much-needed advantage at possibly cracking a playoff spot.

If the Mavericks can win both games in the Play-In Tournament, they will draw the toughest opponent in the Western Conference, the Oklahoma City Thunder. While the Mavs and Thunder have a history dating back to last season, the Mavericks would be at a disadvantage without the star duo of Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis being healthy, since Irving is out for the season.

While Davis continues to light up the scoreboard, the Mavericks will need help from other players if they wish to crack the Western Conference's top eight. With Nico Harrison already showing his lack of emotion when pulling the trigger on shocking roster moves, including the shocking Luka Doncic trade, Mavs fans may be in for one more cutthroat roster decision ahead of the playoffs.

Mavericks could cut Exum for key roster flexibility ahead of playoffs

As it currently stands, the Mavericks are left with one roster spot, which they can begin to use beginning on April 10. Not only do the Mavericks have three standout two-way players on their roster that they can consider signing to fill this spot, but Harrison may explore cutting one player to make room for a second roster spot to fill before the playoffs.

Dante Exum has long been one of the Maverick's standout guards off the bench, dating back to last season. While Exum still played well in his limited time on the floor this season, an untimely broken hand cut his season short.

With this in mind, Exum's future in Dallas became cloudy with multiple two-way players like Brandon Williams, Kai Jones, and Kessler Edwards emerging as legitimate rotational studs who look like they could carve out long-term roles for the Mavs.

Exum has no doubt become a fan favorite in his two seasons as a Maverick, but if the Mavs are serious about making noise in the playoffs, Exum could be cut as he likely won't be healthy for the play-in to begin with. This would be a tough move to make considering how much Exum loves Dallas and how much the fan base loves him, but it's necessary. Harrison has shown many times this season that he does not care about feelings when it comes to a player, and cutting Exum would add to the long list of shocking roster moves Harrison has had to make.

Cutting Exum would not only leave the Mavericks with two roster spots open ahead of the playoffs, but it would give the Mavs a much-needed chance at signing Jones or Edwards to bolster the team's frontcourt depth.

Jones has already shown the ability to bring much-needed energy off the bench and give the Mavericks life on both ends of the floor. While the former first-round pick may look awkward at times, his energy and effort on both ends of the floor could be a difference-maker in a seven-game playoff series. Dallas could also consider signing Williams, as he was fantastic for them in March, and they desperately need more guard help. If they were to sign Williams, this would give Dallas' backcourt depth a major boost right away, and the Mavs would be able to utilize his scoring punch once again.

Cutting Exum may not be a popular move amongst fans, considering the Australian guard has ascended in value over his two seasons in Dallas, but it's a necessary roster move if the team is serious about staying competitive, since he won't be healthy to play anyway.