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The worst thing a franchise can do is to piss off their superstar player. Perhaps back in the 90s, owners playing hardball by being cheapskates could work. Nowadays, with players able to request trades at a moment's notice, teams need to make sure that their stars are happy. However, Mark Cuban and the Dallas Mavericks didn't seem to get that memo in regards to Luka Doncic. Now, they might suffer the consequences of the actions (or inaction).
A recent report revealed that the some in the Mavs organization are worried about a potential Luka Doncic trade request in 2024. The team's disappointing 2022-23 season already had people worried about the star's happiness. However, Cuban and the front office's decision to sit their stars out in a must-win game likely sent Doncic over the edge.
The silver lining for the Mavs front office is that Doncic is seemingly giving them one more chance. With all of the past failures in their minds, what does Dallas need to do to regain the trust of their superstar?
Don't go against his wishes
This seems like the most obvious thing to do, right? Well, the Mavs forgot to do this. Before their fateful game against the Bulls, Luka Doncic went on record to say that he was going to play as long as a playoff shot was in sight. That makes sense: Doncic is a competitive player, and he wants to chase that glory. Besides, the Mavs had a clear path to the Play-In: they had to beat the Bulls (reasonably possible) and the Spurs (much easier). All they needed was for the Grizzlies to beat the Thunder: which is definitely possible.
Instead, the Mavs decided they didn't want to go through the trouble of fighting for a playoff spot, deeming their protected top-10 pick more valuable. They decided to sit Kyrie Irving along with a bunch of key starters out. And in a comically cruel twist, they allowed Luka Doncic to play just the first quarter before benching him. The intent was clear: they didn't want to win.
If the Mavs want to stay on Doncic's good side, they need to acquiesce to his demands. If he wants to win, you try to win. Is that so hard?
Acquire a good center (and actually play him)
The Mavs' struggles this year can be attributed to their absurdly poor roster construction. After their loss to the Warriors in the WCF, Dallas' weaknesses were exposed. In particular, their center rotation looked awfully thin. Dwight Powell isn't the same player he used to be. Maxi Kleber has his moments, but he's not a traditional forward. It was clear that they needed more bigs, both to play with Luka Doncic on offense and as rebounders on defense.
It seemed like the Mavs made a good choice when they signed Christian Wood to a deal. Wood had his flaws on defense, but he proved to be a good rebounder, at the very least. His pairing with Doncic was also intriguing: the possibilities seemed endless. The only thing endless after this season, though, was Wood's time on the pine.
Christian Wood barely saw time for Jason Kidd, presumably because of his defense. However, that problem could be alleviated by playing a defensive big behind him. The Mavs need to fix their big man issues, and actually try to make them work.
Build the defense
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The Mavs' defense is just… bad. Last season, Dallas was legitimately one of the best defenses in the league. They were ranked seventh in the league, and routinely shut down opposing offenses. Despite having a defensive liability in Doncic, Dallas was able to field a competent defense.
This year, though, it's just been… bad. Dorian Finney-Smith regressed a bit from last year, and the absence of Jalen Brunson hurt their defense as well. Add to that Powell's decline this year, and you get a team that was 23rd in defensive rating in the 2023 season. In their desperation to give Doncic help, the also ended up trading Finney-Smith to the Nets, along with Spencer Dinwiddie.
Inevitably, that led to more losses for the Mavs. Yes, Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving can score 30 points apiece and dish out 10+ assists, but the defense would continue to bleed points. Their high-scoring games would become moot. Dallas needs to fix their defense around Doncic and channel more of that same energy from the 2021 campaign.
Speaking of Kyrie Irving…
Sign Kyrie Irving to a deal (or trade him while you can)
Look, Kyrie Irving is a flawed player. On the court, he's a traffic cone and is another ball-dominant point guard like Doncic. Off the court, we've heard countless rumors of Irving destroying any sort of locker room chemistry. All of Irving's teams after the Cavs collapsed due in part to Irving's antics.
Despite that, the Mavs cannot let Irving walk away for free. So far, Irving has gotten great reviews from his Dallas teammates (and Doncic and Cuban himself!). Irving isn't also struggling in Dallas, and while he's part of the problem, he's not exactly THE problem. I believe that it's worth trying at least one more year of the Irving-Doncic show, at least with a better-fitted supporting cast.
Besides, if Irving ends up becoming a headache again… having him on a contract allows the Mavs to recoup some value from him. Either way, Dallas cannot let Irving walk out of town for free.
