The 2024/25 season was one of the most eventful years in the history of the Mavericks, for better (winning the Cooper Flagg draft lottery) or for worse (trading Luka Doncic to the Lakers). So it probably came as a bit of a relief to fans in Dallas and staffers within the organization that the ’25/26 campaign was a whole lot more ordinary, especially after Nico Harrison, the general manager responsible for the stunning Doncic deal, was removed from his position in November.
That’s not to say there weren’t highs and lows. Among the highs was Flagg, who was everything the team hoped he would be, earning Rookie of the Year honors in a tight race with former Duke teammate Kon Knueppel after averaging 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game across 70 outings.
Conversely, star big man Anthony Davis continued to battle health issues during his second season as a Maverick. He was limited to just 20 regular season games in 2025/26 – and 29 overall after being acquired in the Doncic blockbuster – before Dallas sent him to the Wizards at February’s trade deadline. Harrison’s belief that Davis could be the centerpiece of the next Mavs championship team was ultimately misguided, and it was up to his temporary successors, co-interim GMs Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi, to try to salvage some value for an aging, injury-plagued star who was no longer part of the team’s long-term plans.
With Davis not playing enough, young center Dereck Lively II also sidelined due to foot problems, and the team’s other veteran star, Kyrie Irving, still recovering from an ACL tear he suffered in March 2025, Dallas opened the season by losing 23 of its first 35 games, quickly falling out of playoff contention. That simplified the club’s decisions to trade Davis and to hold out Lively and Irving for the entire season. It also allowed the Mavs to feature not just Flagg but several other promising youngsters and breakout role players, including Max Christie, Naji Marshall, and rookie Ryan Nembhard.
With both Doncic and Davis gone, Irving and Lively returning from major injuries, Flagg still just 19 years old, and the Mavs coming off a 26-56 showing, it’s fair to be dubious about the team’s ability to contend again in the short term. But there are plenty of reasons for optimism in Dallas.
Flagg is the most obvious one, and it can’t be overstated how lucky the Mavericks were to land a young cornerstone who looks like a future perennial All-Star after giving up on another player who fit that bill. Even beyond Flagg though, there are bright spots.
This roster still features several of the pieces that it did when Dallas advanced to the NBA Finals in 2024, starting with Irving, Daniel Gafford, and P.J. Washington. Throw in promising recent additions like Christie, Marshall, and Nembhard, along with the No. 9 overall pick in this year’s draft, and this looks like a group capable of being competitive sooner rather than later — especially with new president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri now running the show in the front office, bringing championship experience with him to Dallas.
Does that mean we’ll see the Mavericks back in the playoffs in 2027? Not necessarily. But given that 2026 is the last draft until 2031 in which they’ll control their own first-round pick, a full-fledged rebuild probably isn’t in the cards here. So what exactly will Ujiri’s first summer on the job look like? Let’s dig in.
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