After weeks of anxiety, rumors and talk, the Mavericks will finally make the call on longtime star Michael Finley.

They must decide by midnight Monday, Dallas time, about using the NBA's new luxury-tax amnesty provision and waiving Finley. Or they could trade him for useable assets.

Either way, Finley, 32, will be a former Maverick by 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. On the floor, he was a two-time All-Star and a key figure in the Mavericks' rise from the dark days of the 1990s. Off the court, he was a solid citizen who held a charity golf tournament each summer.

"In this scenario, no matter what comes of it, Michael either experiences free agency or we get something that helps us," said Donnie Nelson, the Mavericks' president of basketball operations. "It's a win-win situation."