2018-19 Dallas Mavericks

2017-18: 24-58
Draft picks: (3-ish),34
Signed for next season ($69.6m): SF Harrison Barnes, SF Wesley Matthews, C Dwight Powell, PF Dirk Nowitzki, PG Dennis Smith, PG JJ Barea, PF Dorian Finney-Smith, PF Maxi Kleber

This summer's free agents: Nerlens Noel, Doug McDermott, Seth Curry, Salah Mejri, Yogi Ferrell, Jhonathon Motley, Kyle Collinsworth, Jalen Jones
I assume they'll bring back Ferrell (I don't think he interrupts the playing time of Dennis Smith) and Mejri (a lovable, reliable big man off the bench). Reports suggest they are looking forward to never seeing Nerlens Noel ever again. I'm not sure about McDermott (I still like him and I think he fits them). Motley and Jones are on 2-way contracts. Not sure about Curry or Collinsworth though the Mavs still have plenty of money and space to fill, if those guys are willing to not take raises, I wouldn't be surprised if the Mavs scooped some or all of them back up (and Aaron Harrison, as well).

In the upcoming draft they're in line for one of the big four: Deandre Ayton (Arizona), Marvin Bagley (Duke), Michael Porter (Missouri), Luke Doncic (Slovenia). Personally I favor Doncic and I think he fits the Mavs perfectly. In the 2nd round, I think Malik Newman (Kansas) has been undervalued and Shake Milton (SMU) is a local product with some upside that could jump into a revamped rotation.

After the 2015 season, they chose not to re-sign Tyson Chandler in an effort to make room for... (who was it? Deron Williams?). Chandler reacted with acrimony. That was after the Rajon Rondo trade which ripped apart a team that had the #1 offense in the league at the time of the trade. They've basically been adrift ever since. I've always wondered why the Mavs weren't better at attracting free agents since they exhibit enviable organizational stability: crazy rich owner who showers his players with love, a top notch (if not terribly likable) coach, a hall of fame cornerstone that's been through thick and thin in a modern metropolitan town that athletes seem to love all dedicated to winning championships. So why haven't they gotten the big names over the years? I always go back to the Chandler rebuke. They dissed one of their heroes for some social-climbing that didn't pay off and they've been out in the cold ever since.

I would suggest their strategy for now ought to be stockpiling the recent draft "busts": Julius Randle, Jabari Parker, Aaron Gordon, Nik Stauskus, Jahlil Okafor, Marcus Smart, Dante Exum, Noah Vonleh and more could all be available this summer. Some of those guys are done, some just need a second chance, which are which? If I were Mark Cuban, I'd give Coach Carlisle a shot at figuring that out. Rather than going for the big names (Lebron ain't walking through that door, folks), they could be the second-chance home for the much maligned (Okafor, Parker), the misunderstood (Vonleh, Stauskus), the underappreciated (Smart, Randle). I'd go big for Gordon (I assume the Magic will re-sign him but who knows what the fuck they're doing?), Randle and Smart. Then Parker and Okafor and I'd bring back McDermott. Even though they have plenty of money to spend, a low cost youth movement gives them a chip on their shoulder and could become a fan favorite while keeping them flexible for next summer. If Carlisle can mold these athletes into a unit, then the post-Dirk years could bring back some excitement and be a landing spot for next summer's big free agents. That said, I'm sure that won't happen. The Mavs will obsequiously lunge at Lebron and PG and KD and Deandre, maybe even Kanter or Favors or Reddick, but I'm betting they mostly strike out. The twisted-youth movement probably doesn't sound like much fun to Carlisle or Cuban but it could be a lot of fun for the fans and a coupla those guys I mentioned above will turn into something (Parker, in particular, could still be a superstar that nobody's noticed yet) and it could rejuvenate the franchise.

For now: The Mavs are a known commodity with a well-respected coach and a lot of money to spend. But I think they'll need one more year to build the environment they seek. There'll be a lot of low hanging fruit this summer, I suggest they load up on that for now. But they won't. The Mavs will be hanging around the airport hotel bar trying to pick up the fancy ladies that they got no shot with. I got a feeling that Dirk's final year will be less bang, more whimper and that's too bad.