ESPNDallas.com will estimate the market value for each of the Mavericks' eight free agents and examine their worth to the Mavs in a once-per-day series.

Chris Kaman

Let’s put it this way: Chris Kaman isn’t going to invite coach Rick Carlisle to join him on one of his beloved hunting trips any time soon.

Unless, well ... never mind.

It’s an understatement to say that Kaman’s season in Dallas didn’t work out as well as anticipated. His frequent defensive lapses didn’t endear Kaman to Carlisle, resulting in Kaman spending much of the second half of the season on the fringe of the rotation, failing to get off the bench in several games.

“Frustrating,” was the politically correct way that Kaman often put it. Needless to say, that feeling was mutual.

While Kaman has repeatedly said he’d like to return to Dallas, it smacks of a veteran with precious little leverage who isn’t going to publicly close any doors. The Mavs’ quest to replace Tyson Chandler needs to move on to another big man.

The simple fact of the matter is that Kaman and German Olympic teammate Dirk Nowitzki don’t fit well together in an NBA frontcourt. With that duo playing, the Mavs were outscored by 59 points in 492 minutes this season.

As the Mavs rebuild around Nowitzki, they must find a starting center who is a better complement to him.

2012-13 stats: Averaged 10.5 points on 50.7 percent shooting, 5.6 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 0.8 blocks in 20.7 minutes.

Age: 30

Comps:

Nene Hilario – Averaged 12.6 points on 48.0 percent shooting, 6.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 0.6 blocks in 27.2 minutes per game. Signed five-year, $65 million deal in 2011.

Robin Lopez – Averaged 11.3 points on 53.4 percent shooting, 5.6 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 1.6 blocks in 26.0 minutes per game. Signed three-year, $15.4 million deal (last two seasons not guaranteed) in 2012.

Spencer Hawes – Averaged 11.0 points on 46.4 percent shooting, 7.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.4 blocks in 27.2 minutes per game. Signed two-year, $13.1 million deal in 2012.

Byron Mullens – Averaged 10.6 points on 38.5 percent shooting, 6.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 0.6 blocks in 26.9 minutes per game. Rookie contract that paid him $2.25 million last season expires this offseason.

Andray Blatche – Averaged 10.3 points on 51.2 percent shooting, 5.1 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.7 blocks in 19.0 minutes per game. Played this season for veteran’s minimum salary.

Estimated contract: It’s hard to imagine Kaman getting anything more than one-year offers. He might get half of the $8 million he made this season.