Jason Kidd got real on the Dallas Mavericks flipping their fortunes around in one season, as they finished with the No. 11 seed last season to miss the postseason entirely. One year later, they’re in the NBA Finals, which was all a part of the Mavs plan according to Kidd.
“We had a plan. You guys just didn’t know it. We got D-Live and O-Max. It’s alright to fail, I’ve said that before. It’s how you fail. We were in the lottery and we got a piece that was huge in D-Live and then we got another piece in O-Max. It’s alright. You can’t win a championship every year, but how do you build a championship organization? Dallas hasn’t been in that situation in a long time. That’s what Nico and Patrick are doing, and I am just happy to be a part of it.”
Though Kidd did stress upon the importance of drafting Dereck Lively and Olivier-Maxence Prosper, Kidd elaborated on the process of instilling a winner’s mindset in an organization.
“The first year I was here, we went to the Western Conference Finals. We hadn’t been there in a long long time, but people acted like we were there every year when we weren’t. Now we’re starting to build something and it’s kinda fun to be a part of. It doesn’t mean you will win a championship each year. If you participate and play for one, that’s fun, and that’s what we’re trying to build here.”
Jason Kidd on missing the playoffs last season and making the Finals this season:
“We had a plan. You guys just didn’t know it. We got D-Live and O-Max. It’s alright to fail, I’ve said that before…Now we’re starting to build something and it’s kinda fun to be apart of .” pic.twitter.com/2ak7Yf5ayE
— Noah Weber (@noahweber00) June 2, 2024
The Mavericks were heavily depleted assets-wise last season, especially after making the Kyrie Irving trade. All the players on their roster outside the top two were assets with limited value, forcing the Mavs to attach draft picks to all their subsequent trades to improve the quality of the roster.
The moves they made ended up being perfect for what the team needed, as they now sit in the NBA Finals, which tips off on Thursday, June 6.
The Mavericks Rebuild Was Fascinating
The Mavericks might have set a new blueprint for team building with their remarkable turnaround this season.
The process starts with the 2023 Draft where they selected Dereck Lively with the 12th pick, as the rookie center has changed the future of the franchise while projecting to be the next Tyson Chandler. O-Max Prosper hasn’t gotten a run on the main team this season but is coming off a great G League season and could find himself in the rotation next season.
Their free agency signings were mostly hits, as Derrick Jones Jr. and Dante Exum were incredible value finds who have helped them contend this season. Seth Curry and Grant Williams didn’t end up working out, but they were quickly moved for P.J. Washington at the trade deadline.
Richaun Holmes came over to the Mavericks when they acquired the pick that got them Prosper in the 2023 Draft, with his contract going to the Wizards for Daniel Gafford at the deadline.
The Washington and Gafford trades turned a play-in team into a bonafide contender. All of this is working because they had stars like Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving in place, which should inspire other top-heavy rosters in the NBA to alter how they approach team-building in the future.
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