Founder
The Dallas Mavericks have spent the past few offseasons going for major superstar players like Deron Williams, Dwight Howard and Chris Paul in free agency.
After failing to get any of them, many believed the Mavs reached a downfall in their era of continuously making the playoffs.
Last season, Dallas fell short of getting an eighth seed, and many expected the 2013-14 season to be a rebuilding year for them. With Dirk Nowitzki's final NBA years in play, along with other aging veterans currently on the team's roster, many pundits have said they should tank.
However, the Mavericks have loaded up on their roster more than you think.
They have gotten some key pieces already, such as Monta Ellis, Samuel Dalembert and Jose Calderon. They have also gotten Wayne Ellington and DeJuan Blair off the bench, as well as point guard Devin Harris.
With all that in mind, Dallas does have a good enough roster to make the playoffs next season, and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is a strong believer in that. In no way does Cuban think the upcoming season will be a rebuilding one.
“Oh no. Hell no. Don’t even go there. Look, there’s no template for winning in the NBA. … Dirk’s got to be healthy and he’s working hard. He’s been in the gym every single day looking great," Cuban said, via the Dallas Morning News. "Then we’ve got to come together as a team. We’ve got Samuel Dalembert, Monta Ellis, Wayne Ellington, DeJuan Blair. We brought in a lot of really good players and now it’s up to Coach Carlisle to make it all work together.”
The Mavericks definitely do have enough role players to make a run for the playoffs, but likely nothing more than a seventh or eighth seed, considering how tough it is alone just to even get into just the top 10 seeds of the Western Conference.
Cuban does believe Howard would have helped long-term, but at least he knows Dallas hasn't regressed on talent this offseason.
“Now, I think over the long term would we have been better Dwight? That’s why we went after him, but this year, I think we’ll be better.”
