Trade & Free Agency 2026/2027

[RasheedsBigWhiteSpot]

I think mainly Kyrie will be here, because his trade value is lower and you need some veterans to mentor the kids. Though I get the sense that the Mavs will be very active with a wrecking ball approach. The non-committal talk by Masai with regards to Washington and Gafford makes me think something like this will happen:

Bryant + #20 for Washington
Kispert + #23 for Gafford
#9 + TPE for #12 + #17 + Wiggins + Joe

Take

Johnson
Steinbach
Okorie
Anderson
Evans

Your young core becomes

Anderson/Okorie
Christie/Evans
Flagg/Bryant
Johnson/Steinbach
Lively/Cisse

...and at the start of the 2028/2029 literally every contract except the rookie deals is gone (if you want to).

If we're going scorched Earth, burning it all down and reloading through the Draft, there's no way I'm leaving without at least one top 10 pick.

I grew up with the 80s Mavericks where (partially thanks to the Cavs) they just lobbed pick after pick after pick every year and acted like the Joker, breaking a pool stick and declaring it "tryouts". There were very few veterans. The young players just grew up together. I feel like a team can get away with that tactic when you have someone like Cooper as the centerpiece. Like, I can see him, as early as next season, just being the veteran like voice who will say, "Hey, I'm going to be here every morning at 6AM working on my game. Show up and work as hard as me and we'll go somewhere. If not, f--- off." The early 90s Cowboys were great because Troy and Irvin practiced their asses off and players were terrified of letting Aikman down.