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In

^{D’Angelo Russell (PG)}

Rookies

• Cooper Flagg (SF) – Pick #1
• Ryan Nembhard (SG) – Undrafted

Out

^{Olivier-Maxence Prosper (PF)
Kai Jones (C)
Kessler Edwards (SF)
Spencer Dinwiddie (SG)}

Depth Chart

PG – Cooper Flagg – Kyrie Irving is injured
SG – Klay Thompson
SF – P.J. Washington
F – Anthony Davis
C – Dereck Lively II
6th Man – Naji Marshall
Rotation players – D’Angelo Russell / Daniel Gafford / Dante Exum / Max Christie / Brandon Williams / Jaden Hardy

^{Dallas Mavericks Profile}

Team Ceiling

1st round – Their ceiling highly depends on the Kyrie Irving situation. He should comeback by the start of 2026. Right now, they are missing him very much because they don’t have another reliable point guard and Cooper Flagg has just arrive – younger player in the whole NBA. If they keep a stable record, Irving can help the Mavs reach a playoff spot through the second period of the season.

Team Floor

Nothing – On the other hand, if they start with a bad record and Kyrie doesn’t come back soon, they might be in serious trouble. The West is quite competitive and they need to build a winner team from the very start of the season.

X-Factor

Cooper Flagg – The Mavs rotation is quite great if you see them player by player, so Flagg is key in terms of completing the team. He’s still 18 years old but has great potential in front of him. If the Mavs do it well with this kid, he has a great opportunity of growing with great players such as Davis and Thompson to become a superstart in the NBA.

Bust

D’Angelo Russell – It seems that the Mavericks will not trust D’Angelo with neither the starting or the second option PG. With just 10 years in the league, he’s just averaging 12 minutes per game this season, and his numbers have just been decreasing these last years.

Dark Horse

Naji Marshall – When everything was going downhill for Dallas last year, Marshall absorbed a lot of minutes and shots for them – even scoring 38 in one game for his career high. He will not be no superstar, but if Kidd knows where to put him, Naji could become a key asset for Dallas.

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I think that if Irving was here for the whole season, the player development for Cooper Flagg would be quite different. He would be the third or fourth option in the team, taking some flashes off from him and allowing him to gain confidence step by step. But right now, he already has the responsibility of beingh the starting PG and directing this team.

In any case, this is not bad for him. If Davis, PJ, Gafford and Lively can stay healthy, they have a great team along with Klay. Flagg can learn a lot from them and will not need to be the lonely superstar that other #1 picks needed to be once they started their NBA careers.

It’s exciting to see what Flagg can be capable of, taking into account his height and basketball IQ. Apart from that, Dallas is a mystery. They can either be a great team that reaches the Playoffs or a team full of injured people where Flagg is shooting 15-20 shots per game.

We will discover it soon…