Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg celebrates after making a three point basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center on Sunday, April 5, 2026, in Dallas.
Smiley N. Pool/The Dallas Morning News
The Dallas Mavericks are set to tip off their 2025-26 season.
Cooper Flagg, Kyrie Irving and the Mavs, behind new head coach Dusty May, will open their season on Wednesday against the Houston Rockets. Their first home game is set for Saturday against the San Antonio Spurs.
Here’s everything to know about the 2025-26 Mavericks before the start of their season, including top storylines, previews, predictions, scheduling info and more.
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How to watch Dallas Mavericks games in 2025-26
All of the Mavericks’ locally available games are able to be watched on MavsTV for free through a partnership with TEGNA-owned KFAA29 (channel 29). All games televised on MavsTV will also be accessible through their rebranded streaming service, MavsTV+, the home of all games not exclusively televised on national television.
Mavs games will also run for free over-the-air in 14 additional markets across the state — Abilene, Amarillo, Bryan-College Station, El Paso, Harlingen/Rio Grande Valley, Laredo, Lubbock, Midland-Odessa, San Angelo, Sherman-Denison, Texarkana, Tyler-Longview, Waco, and Wichita Falls. WFAA (channel 8) will share at least 15 games to broadcast simultaneously with TEGNA station WFAA in Dallas-Fort Worth.
For more information on how to watch the Mavs this season, click here.
How to watch Mavericks-Rockets season opener
When: Wednesday, Oct. 21, 7:30 p.m.
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Where: Toyota Center, Houston
TV/streaming: MavsTV+, KFAA/WFAA; NBA League Pass
Mavericks’ first 5 games
GameDateOpponentTimeTV1Wednesday, Oct. 21Houston Rockets7:30 p.m.MavsTV2Friday, Oct. 23Indiana Pacers6 p.m.MavsTV3Saturday, Oct. 24San Antonio Spurs7 p.m.MavsTV4Monday, Oct. 26Miami Heat6:30 p.m.MavsTV, NBA TV5Wednesday, Oct. 28Oklahoma City Thunder8:30 p.m.ESPN
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Mavericks projected starting lineup
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Mavericks season predictions
Tim Cowlishaw: The massive front office overhaul of the off-season did not include any radical transformation of the Mavs’ roster. The return of Kyrie Irving aside, this looks a lot like last year’s lottery team, only there are no longer prizes for losing games in the NBA. It also means a tougher schedule for everyone, and Dallas will feel the burden. Save for the short-lived interest in seeing how Irving and Cooper Flagg operate together while nearly a generation apart in age, Dusty May’s first pro team is short on shooters and defensive stoppers and maybe even rebounders. No playoff games this spring and no play-in games either.
See more of our expert Mavs predictions here.
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Top Mavericks stories
Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg (32) poses during media day on Friday, Sept. 25, 2026 at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
Shafkat Anowar/The Dallas Morning News
No longer a rookie, the Mavericks are now Cooper Flagg’s team. How will he fare in Year 2?
It was the way he strutted around the gymnasium, shaking hands with every teammate, coach and executive he could and dapping up members of the media.
It’s a contrast from last year, when Flagg was a rookie trying to fit in on a team centered around future NBA Hall of Famers Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson. This year, it’s Flagg’s team. Even the historic locker inside American Airlines Center that once belonged to Davis, Luka Doncic and Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki is now Flagg’s.
After a historic rookie season, he’s trusting an offseason plan to help him reach even greater heights in Year Two.
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Dallas Mavericks head coach Dusty May pictured during a pregame press conference before a preseason NBA basketball game at the Venetian Arena on Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, in Macao.
Elías Valverde II/The Dallas Morning News
As a junior high schooler in Bloomfield, Ind., Dusty May woke up before sunrise to play pickup basketball with a group of men who gathered early in the morning for the love of the game. His high school coach, Mark Barnhizer, picked him up from his mom’s house at 5:30 a.m., ahead of his first class.
Competing against adults and watching Barnhizer, a legendary coach in Indiana, instruct him and his teammates set May’s sights on coaching. By the time he played his lone season at Division II Oakland City University, he was well on his way to his first job as a student manager at Indiana under coaching icon Bob Knight.
Knight, a Hall of Famer, was as well known for his on-court temper and outbursts as he was for his prolific and disciplined motion offense. The more reserved May might not look like a Knight disciple, but coaches who’ve watched his progression to head coach of the Dallas Mavericks say there’s a fiery competitor underneath his nice-guy persona.
“He kind of enjoys having the squeaky-clean image … but knowing deep down that he’s a killer,” said Kyle Church, who spent 13 years working with May across multiple college programs.
Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving signs autographs for children during the Dallas Mavericks 2026 Community Tip-off at Halperin Park on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Dallas.
Elías Valverde II/The Dallas Morning News
Being 34 and entering his 15th NBA season gives Kyrie Irving more than enough reason to reflect this week.
His longevity, though, barely scratches the surface of why he seemed more introspective Monday, two days before the Mavericks open their 2026-27 season.
During a nine-minute availability with reporters, Irving touched on topics with added perspective. And humor, especially when asked whether he sees himself “sort of coaching” first-year Mavericks coach Dusty May on the ways of the NBA.
More season preview stories
— Mavericks unveil unprecedented scope of dining options at AAC for 2026-27 season
— Veteran forward P.J. Washington is ready for the Mavericks to ‘give life back to the city’
— Mavericks revamp season tipoff event, bringing smiles to Oak Cliff community
— Mavericks waive longtime center Dwight Powell ahead of NBA’s roster deadline
— Can Dusty May hoop? Former Maverick shares unique perspective on Dallas’ new head coach
— After Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg, whom will Dusty May rely on as Mavs’ third scoring option?
— Mavericks unveil new court to be used for NBA Cup games at American Airlines Center
— How to watch Dallas Mavericks games in 2026-27: Everything to know about MavsTV+ and more