08-30-2026, 02:49 PM
(08-30-2026, 05:43 AM)Mavs2021 Wrote: I genuinely wonder what their plan for this year is. It certainly cannot be wins maximization (in the Cuban way) otherwise they would have addressed that guard rotation further, no matter what people think of these alleged bad guards, we could have had a free run at guys like Sexton, Mathurin, Simons, Schroeder for no cost at all.
My guess for their perfect season would be accelerated young player development all year, health and acquire a pending free agency difference maker (Barrett, Herro) for a late play-in push. Finish strongly like 18-12 (9th or 10th place in the West) for your fans, your players, reasonable odds for a small chance at #1 or #2 and to make yourself attractive for top players in free agency.
If they can´t get the difference maker at TDL I would not be shocked, if they go into the tank completely. Mavs really don´t have to worry about handing Charlotte a good pick, but they have to worry about swapping/giving valuable stuff to the Thunder, Spurs or Rockets from 2028 onwards.
There really is no point to tanking so they'll never try to lose, but I could see them being sellers at the TDL. The plan should be fairly simple.
-Continue to develop Flagg and start to develop Rez.
-Develop May and the coaching staff.
-Assess Kyrie and Lively which will depend a lot on their health.
-Assess the fit of PJ and Landlord.
I personally hope we hang onto Kyrie, but if we do decide to move on or he wants out, I think the Spurs would be an interesting trade partner as Fox would be a decent Kyrie replacement and we could restock/reclaim some draft capital. I could see the Spurs doing it as an all-in move since their championship window is now. And I could see us doing it if we struggle out the gate and assuming Kyrie is close to his old self. Kyrie is probably our last asset that could bring back something of merit.