Mark Cuban Thinks Draft Has “11-12 Good Players”

Sitting with the 9th pick in the draft, Mark Cuban and the Dallas Mavericks believe the draft has “11-12 good players” in it.

The NBA Draft is just under three hours away and the Dallas Mavericks currently own the 9th pick in the draft.

With the entertaining week that has taken place leading up until the draft, storylines are endless for how the draft might alter the shape of the league.

Before the draft on Thursday night, Mark Cuban took part in a ceremonial swing(?) that would officially start construction on the new locker room. With the media crowded around and Cuban wearing safety glasses and a construction helmet, the owner of the Mavericks took his first swings at the lockers.

Well that first swing didn’t go as planned.

Following a speech by Cuban about the new, high-tech locker room, Cuban addressed the media about what is to come later tonight.

"“We are trying to wheel and deal. We think there will be a good player there at nine,” Cuban said when talking about chatter before the draft."

Although there has been talk all around the league surrounding trade rumors, the Dallas Mavericks have been relatively quiet leading up until draft time. The only “legitimate” chatter was reported by ESPN’s Tim MacMahon regarding Dallas speaking with Minnesota.

Cuban referenced many times that the majority of deals talked about before the draft never get done and they will always be talking with teams.

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As far as the draft being top-heavy with 8-9 solid prospects, Cuban believes it is a little deeper of the draft at top.

“We think there are 11-12 good players,” Cuban said in regards to a question about the draft having a “top eight” class.

Basing off a consensus board of top players, you would assume Cuban might be putting names such as Donovan Mitchell, Zach Collins, Luke Kennard and maybe others into the top-tier of prospects.

Cuban also noted that they had received “tons of offers” for the pick, but did remind everyone this is normal trade talk between every team.

Next: Last Minute Mock Draft Roundtable

Now, the waiting game is here as the clock continues to tick down until the draft gets underway.