Mavericks acquire Richaun Holmes and first-round pick Olivier-Maxence Prosper from Kings

Dallas traded with the Sacramento Kings on Thursday, acquiring center Richaun Holmes and the No. 24 pick. With the pick, the Mavericks drafted forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper from Marquette. The Mavericks in return gave the Kings a traded player exemption.

A 6-foot-8 forward, Prosper averaged 12.5 points on 51% from the field and 34% from 3 last season. Before Marquette, Prosper, from Montreal, Canada, played at the NBA Academy in Mexico City, along with future NBA first round picks Josh Giddey and Benedict Mathruin.

“It prepared me so much,” Prosper said. “The opportunity to be a part of it, the competition, I got better every day. So it was awesome.”

Holmes only averaged eight minutes per game last season on the Kings, and the Mavericks will use an exemption gained from the Davis Bertans trade to not have Homles’ $13 million contract affect their cap space. In the 2020-21 season, he averaged 14 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game.

Prosper is a high-upside athletic player, with a 40-inch vertical jump and quickness to defend on the perimeter. On offense, his shooting could improve, but he shines off-the-ball and working around defenses.

“Talk about a guy who can move without the ball,” said ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas. “He’s an energy player, a skilled defender, and a versatile one. He’s super athletic, really active, really mobile, and he shot 79% on cuts to the basket. He’s a good catch-and-shoot guy, and he’s going to continue to improve. The ceiling is high.”