Dallas Mavericks: Revisiting the 2006 NBA Draft

As we continue to look at the past 18 drafts in the post-Dirk era of the Dallas Mavericks, we turn our attention to the 2006 NBA Draft.

With the NBA Draft set to take place next month, we here at The Smoking Cuban have decided to take an in-depth look at each of the drafts after the Mavericks landed Dirk Nowitzki. With the 2005 draft in the books, now comes the 2006 draft headlined by Andrea Bargnani.

Notable Players Drafted in 2006

Top 5 Picks (Andrea Bargnani, LaMarcus Aldridge, Adam Morrison, Tyrus Thomas, Shelden Williams)

Brandon Roy– Rd. 1, Pick 6 (MIN)

Rudy Gay– Rd. 1, Pick 8 (HOU)

J.J. Redick– Rd. 1, Pick 11 (ORL)

Rajon Rondo– Rd. 1, Pick 21 (PHX)

Kyle Lowry– Rd. 1, Pick 24 (MEM)

Paul Millsap– Rd. 2, Pick 47 (UTA)

State of the Mavs

In the first complete season without both Steve Nash and Michael Finley, the Dallas Mavericks did quite well as they reached their first Finals in franchise history.

Michael Finley had previously left in free agency to sign with the San Antonio Spurs and Dallas was faced to turn to some veterans in Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse to go along with youngster Devin Harris in the backcourt.

Dallas rolled through the West beating the Grizzlies, Spurs, and Suns in their road to matchup with Mr. Free Throw, Dwayne Wade himself in the Finals. Dallas notably lost in a six game series to the Miami Heat.

Dallas entered the offseason with no huge question marks as they looked to build upon the team that just rolled to the Finals. Dallas went into draft night with the 28th and 58th pick in the draft.

What the Mavs Did

The Mavericks actually possessed a first round pick (28th) heading into the draft and decided to pick a player in the first round; that player was Maurice Ager out of Michigan State University.

Ager was a 6’5″ guard who had just came off a senior season at Michigan State where he averaged nearly 20 points a game. Ager looked to come into Dallas to help solidify a backcourt bench unit.

In disappointing fashion, Ager played in just 44 games for Dallas and only 5 years total in the league. The only positive was that he was a part of the package that got Jason Kidd to Dallas from New Jersey.

It was in the un-drafted player pool that Dallas signed a small, 6’0″ guard out of Northeastern University by the name of J.J. Barea. Barea not only made the roster as an un-drafted free agent, but played for the Mavericks six straight years before heading to Minnesota for a couple of years and is now on the current roster.

Whether the Ager move was a good move or not, Dallas had one of the best regular season’s in NBA history as they went on to win 67 games that season.

What the Mavs Should’ve Done

With the Mavs being in the Finals the year before, they literally could have went in any direction on Draft night.

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Ager was a very talented guard who just had an impressive senior season at Michigan State where he led the Big Ten in scoring that season. Dallas elected to go with Greg Buckner and Jerry Stackhouse as the majority minute holders as guards off the bench during Ager’s rookie season thus making him a bench warmer at best.

Even though it didn’t work out, I think the Mavs made the right move. Taking a chance on the Big Ten leading scorer after reaching the Finals the year before is something that is understandable. There were also no other major options that low in the first round heading into the second round.

Stay tuned as we continue down the path of revisiting all the drafts since Dirk came into the league.