While teams that are looking to contend for championships in the NBA these days look to add as much star power as possible, it seems like the Mavericks aren’t going that route. They had an amazing 2021-22 season as they reached the Western Conference Finals and the offseason had gotten off to a good start as well, as they traded for Christian Wood, but things went south after that.
Their failure to secure Jalen Brunson to a long-term deal before and during the season meant that the Knicks were able to snap him up on a 4-year deal in excess of $100 million, an offer that Dallas wasn’t going to match. Fans weren’t happy as you can imagine and when they failed to sign even someone like Goran Dragic later on, there was more anger directed at Cuban. Cuban, for his part, seems happy with the roster and in an interview with Taylor Rooks for Bleacher Report, added that he thinks they just need more experience, rather than star power, to contend for titles.
Mavericks Mark Cuban on Warriors playoff loss & if Luka Doncic needs a co-star:
“I think for us it’s not so much we need that second star or whatever it’s more let’s just get some time and experience in crunch time situations in the playoffs…” #MFFL
(🎥: @BleacherReport) pic.twitter.com/rpBQEftvTD
— Kevin Gray Jr. (@KevinGraySports) August 17, 2022
“When we lost in the Conference Finals, I don’t think it was for lack of talent. I think the Warriors deserve a lot of credit because they have played together for so long… the experience of having played together for all those years and been in crunch situations, knowing what to do, we haven’t been there yet. We hadn’t been out of the first round in 10 years and so a lot of it was execution and talking to our guys during the series, that was the thing that kept coming up.”
“So I think for us it’s not so much we need that second star or whatever, it’s more, let’s just get some time and experience in crunch time situations in the playoffs and that will pay off.”
Sure, experience matters but talent plays such a big role, especially considering it’s just 5 guys on the court for a team. Having 2 or 3 stars among them gives you a massive advantage, something that the Mavericks just won’t have next season. The fans won’t be happy with an explanation like this and you can’t really blame them for it either.
Cuban also added during this interview that it was Andrew Wiggins who beat the Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals, as they didn’t know what to expect from him and he ended up balling out.
