The NBA scheduling powers that be are doing the Dallas Mavericks zero favors to start the 2026-27 season.
The Mavericks’ first six opponents of the year sport a combined record from last year of 292-200. Dallas faces the Rockets (52-30) twice, the NBA finalist San Antonio Spurs (62-20) once and the only team in the West that had a better record than the Spurs, the Oklahoma City Thunder (64-18), once in that span.
The Indiana Pacers are the one team the Mavs face in that span that had a losing record
a year ago (19-63) — and they are a popular pick this year to have the biggest turnaround in the league, with Tyrese Halliburton working his way back to health after tearing his Achilles in the 2025 NBA Finals. That, along with the additions of Ivica Zubac and Kelly Oubre Jr. could put Indiana back in the catbird seat in the Eastern Conference.
Not to mention, the Miami Heat, also one of the Mavericks’ early opponents, netted the biggest catch of the 2026 offseason after a 43-39 campaign a year ago. Giannis Antetokounmpo now resides in South Beach, seated at the helm of a remade Heat roster that also harbors the likes of Bam Adebayo, Davion Mitchell, and former Mavericks Tim Hardaway Jr. and Klay Thompson. So, if nothing else, that game will be an interesting one lumped in with a bunch of tough tests to start the year.
The Mavericks started last season with a 2-4 record, and it only got worse from there. Then-General Manager Nico Harrison was fired as the sour stretch to start 2025-26 dragged to 3-8. Then it got to 3-10 after losses to the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Clippers. It would be easy to see another 2-4 start to this year, or perhaps even 1-5. Another 3-8 start is definitely on the table this year.
If the Mavericks are going to take a significant step forward this year, that would mean bouncing back to play something close to .500 basketball the rest of the way. Is that asking too much from a cobbled-together roster led by a first-year coach coming to the NBA from the college ranks? As currently constructed, the Dallas roster still has one foot stuck in a previous iteration while also looking forward with something of a youth movement after team president Masai Ujiri’s first offseason at the controls.
You’d have to think that Cooper Flagg’s second-year maturation, plus the addition of a healthy Kyrie Irving, could help the Mavs improve upon the 23-46 mark they recorded after that 3-10 start a year ago. If the team gets a little injury luck, which has not been granted in either of the last two seasons, Dallas could be one of the surprise teams in the league this year.
There are a lot of “ifs.” There are a lot of possibilities. But one thing to watch out for will be how the Mavericks meet the challenge the first six games of the year present.
If Dallas goes 2-4 or 1-5 to start the year, don’t lose hope. A bumpy start may always have been built in here. But if they can somehow start the year 3-3 or, heaven forbid, better, watch out. It may be the first sign that this team could possibly, just maybe, be, better than average? Bordering on good?
I don’t know if I can quite squint and see that vision. But I’m willing to be shown the way.
