The 2026 Season May Be the Dallas Mavericks’ Worst This Century
This season might be the Dallas Mavericks’ worst campaign after the year 2000. Here’s why, so you can make an informed decision on the matter.
This Season May Be the Dallas Mavericks’ Worst After 2000
To say the Dallas Mavericks are struggling this season is an understatement. The Mavericks’ injuries, illnesses, and inconsistencies are glaring holes often talked about in the NBA world. Of course, things could be worse. The Mavericks could be the Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Pelicans, or Utah Jazz. Dallas holds an underwhelming 19-35 record and enters the second half of the 2025-26 NBA season with a nine-game losing skid.
The Mavs’ misfortunes showed up after they lucked out at the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery. They used the No. 1 overall pick of the 2025 NBA Draft to select Cooper Flagg, and head coach.
28 regular-season games are remaining, and the Mavs don’t appear to have much hope to compete for the 2026 NBA Playoffs. Dallas is currently seven games behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the final spot in the 2026 NBA Play-In Tournament.
The Mavs can only win by losing, while welcoming the tank. Former Majority Owner Mark Cuban appears to favor the team tanking, too. Cuban, 67, took to social media on Tuesday, writing a long-winded rant about how the NBA should embrace tanking.
Cuban’s rant read, “The NBA has been misguided thinking that fans want to see their teams compete every night with a chance to win. It’s never been that way. When I got into the NBA, they thought they were in the basketball business. They aren’t. They are in the business of creating experiences for fans.
“Fans know their team can’t win every game. They know only one team can win a ring. What fans that care about their team’s record want is hope. The one way to get closer to that is via the draft. And trades. And cap room. You have a better chance of improving via all three when you tank.”
Cuban has a good point. The NBA should embrace tanking to give all of the league’s teams a shot at success. Sometimes, teams who tank, such as the Oklahoma City Thunder, ultimately succeed.
Dallas Mavericks’ Outlook
The Dallas Mavericks’ outlook appears to be bright in terms of the youth movement, including Flagg. Bleacher Report’s Grant Hughes believes the Mavericks only have seven wins left in them in the second half of the 2025-26 NBA season. Hughes cited the Mavs’ trade of Anthony Davis for a “giant nothing-burger of a return,” the team’s maximization of the 2026 first-round pick, and the team’s point differential.
Mavericks’ Next Steps
If the Mavericks win 26 games to conclude the season, it will mark the Mavericks’ second-worst record in the 21st century. The only Mavs squad that performed worse than this was the 2017-18 team that won just 24 games.
