The Mavericks ended the year 26-56, a 12th-place finish in the West. They split their final two games with a loss to San Antonio (139-120) and a win at home against Chicago (149-128). Cooper Flagg led the team in scoring this year with 21 points per game. In fact, he led the team in total points (1473), rebounds (466), assists (316), and steals (84).
Grade: C+
Dallas had one of the strangest seasons of any team in recent memory. From the moment the NBA calendar flipped over in June until the final game, there
was no shortage of drama for the Mavericks. It began with Dallas selecting Cooper Flagg number one in the draft, adding a remarkable young talent to a team with a lot of veteran experience. Playoff dreams were still on the table when the season began, but they fizzled out quickly. From the moment Nico Harrison was fired on November 11, 2025, the expectations and focus of the organization shifted towards the future.
Dallas did its best to give us entertaining basketball in a season that should have had none. They played the most clutch games in the league (45), but went just 17-28. They were fourth in pace (~102.6 possessions per game) and had a lot of fun performances. Cooper Flagg scored 51 points, Naji Marshall had a near 30-point triple-double, and even Khris Middleton exploded for 35 points in just 25 minutes against the Grizzlies.
Of course, with the updated expectations came the balance between blatant tanking and losing the “ethical” way. Dallas opted for the latter most of the time, but because they still had Flagg and other talented players, they ultimately fell short of securing a top chance at the number one pick. Dallas will enter next week’s draft lottery with the eighth-best odds at a consecutive number one selection and just a 29 percent chance to move into the top four.
The first month of the season was an unenjoyable mess, and the really fun moments were few and far between after that. The Mavericks were always going to be behind the eight ball this year, but even still, their performance did not warrant anything better than a C+. By March, or maybe even before, consistent watchers were anticipating the sweet release of game 82. It is all over now, and the excitement will only build.
Straight A’s: Cooper Flagg
Cooper Flagg capped off his sensational rookie campaign by becoming the 19th number one pick to win Rookie of the Year. The list is littered with Hall of Famers and All-Stars, and Flagg projects to be just that. His season averages of 21 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 2.1 stocks (steals plus blocks) were all top five in rookie rankings, including number one in points per game. He provided some of the most incredible rookie moments we have seen in recent memory, like the aforementioned 51-point game and a 49-point, 10-rebound explosion against his Duke roommate and Rookie of the Year runner-up, Kon Knueppel. There was so much to love about Flagg in his first NBA season, but instead of telling you, I will leave you with 20 minutes of his best plays:
Failed the class: Nico Harrison’s vision
Harrison’s tenure in Dallas will, of course, go down in infamy. Not just as a touchy subject for Mavericks fans, but as the poster boy for modern dysfunction in American sports. Harrison traded Luka Doncic in the name of defense, and it was on Anthony Davis’ frail shoulders to show the world that Harrison was right. Unfortunately, for both of them, this vision crashed and burned in spectacular fashion.
Davis played just five games, with Dallas winning two of them, before getting hurt. By the time he came back, the Mavericks had dug themselves into a 5-14 hole, and one that they could not dig themselves out of. During that absence, general manager Nico Harrison was fired, and Davis only played 20 games for Dallas before getting traded to Washington in February.
All in all, Harrison’s gamble had two glaring oversights. He did not realize the emotional importance that Luka Doncic had. This was made clear in his press conference after a disastrous end to the 2025 season. He also failed to realize that you need a point guard in the modern NBA. Dallas started rookie forward Cooper Flagg at point guard for nearly a month to begin the year, and the options they had when they moved on from that plan were not much better. Defense cannot win championships if your offense cannot score. And so, down went Harrison alongside his ambitious idea.
Extra Credit: Jason Kidd
With so much going on around the team this year, playing hard on a nightly basis is a tough ask. Yet, they did, and they did so without any excuses. There are a lot of negatives you could discuss with this team, but effort is not one of them. And that starts with the coach. Jason Kidd has his flaws. He is too experimental in the regular season, he is weird in postgame press conferences, and he has all but explicitly stated he was in on the Luka Doncic trade. But one thing has remained consistent in his time as head coach: he gets his team to play hard. And if Kidd is going to be with the Mavericks long-term, that is a good quality to have in your head coach.
