The Dallas Mavericks were supposed to be one of the teams on the lower end of the spectrum in the Western Conference coming into this season, despite the addition of forward Harrison Barnes. Instead, the Mavs were actually in a tight race for that coveted eight seed recently but now sit 3.5 games out of a playoff berth with a 31-40 record.
While the season shouldn’t necessarily be considered a success, the Mavs have sustained a blueprint for success in the future. With Dirk Nowitzki’s retirement on the horizon, the Mavs were forced to rebuild and have done so admirably. A lot of the overachieving the Mavs have done recently and a lot of their success over the past two decades could be attributed to Owner Mark Cuban. He, head coach Rick Carlisle, and the rest of that Dallas front office have always done an exceptional job of getting the most out of players.
This year, Cuban and the Mavs found a couple of young backcourt gems in Yogi Ferrell and Seth Curry and the trade deadline acquisition of Nerlens Noel should provide the frontcourt with structure for years. Cuban has taken note of the team’s rapid, progressive development this season and even stated that the Mavs have gone through the entire rebuild process in one season.
Not only is Cuban successful at what he does, but the entrepreneur is also one of the most vocal figures in the league, never afraid to say what’s on his mind. This time, Cuban comedically mocked Los Angeles Clippers big Blake Griffin after he recently dramatically flopped against 6’0″ Mavs guard J.J. Barea. Following from Fansided’s Isaac Harris:
I asked Mark Cuban about J.J. Barea's ejection on play with Blake Griffin. His response while laughing pic.twitter.com/dEk1LK9SPv
— Isaac Harris (@IsaacHarrisNBA) March 25, 2017
Since Mark Cuban became the Dallas Mavericks majority owner in 2000, he’s never been one to hold his tongue and that doesn’t seem to change anytime soon. With the successful Nowitzki era drawing to a close, Cuban will have a busy offseason ahead of him as he tries to continue revamping this Dallas roster.
