Mavericks just made their stance on D'Angelo Russell painfully clear — with one snub

The Dallas Mavericks' opening night of free agency was short and sweet, as their one move of the night was signing D'Angelo Russell to a two-year deal. Dallas had been heavily linked to Russell leading up to free agency beginning, and Nico Harrison granted him his wish by signing him that night.

The Mavericks are extremely high on Russell and what he can bring next season, and a new report from NBA insider Marc Stein confirms just that. A few days ago, he revealed that the Mavs wanted Russell more than they wanted Chris Paul (subscription required). This is definitely a bold take, as Paul is a Hall of Famer in the making, but Dallas believes in Russell and his fit alongside their current core.

Stein notes that Dallas liked Russell more than Paul in free agency because they believe that he will be able to find a role more easily once Kyrie Irving returns from his ACL tear. The Mavericks wanted a player who could run the show while Irving was out, while later being able to play alongside him once he's healthy. Dallas clearly believes that Russell was a better fit for that task, but the reasons don't end there.

Mavericks wanted D'Angelo Russell over Chris Paul

The Mavericks also believed that Russell was going to fit better next to Anthony Davis, as they were teammates for the Los Angeles Lakers as recently as last season.

It always looked like Paul was going to sign with one of the Los Angeles teams, but the fact that the Mavericks wanted Russell more than him shows how confident they are in his abilities. The performance out of Dallas's stopgap starting point guard was always going to have a major impact on their season, and Russell being effective could quietly make or break the Mavs' place in the standings to begin the year.

Mavs fans shouldn't expect Russell to be a star, as he is a high-end role player at best at this point in his career, and it seems like Mavericks fans are already underestimating what he can bring to the floor. Russell is a stellar passer and shooter, and he'll at least give Dallas a steady hand to lead the offense for the first few months of the season.

The best part of the Russell signing is that he wasn't even brought in to be the starting point guard. The Mavericks signed him to step in for Irving while he is out before transitioning into more of a back-seat role, and they believe that he could play this role better than Paul.

On top of the obvious on-court fit conversation, Russell may have been the better fit than Paul due to Paul's ego. With Paul not being the best two guard, him and Irving wouldn't have been the best pairing when sharing the floor together, and his minutes would've likely plummeted once Irving came back.

Even though Paul was a popular option among Mavs fans in free agency, Russell has the potential to be just as good or even better. The Mavericks seemingly have all of the belief in the world in Russell and what he brings to the game, and them signing him over Paul should tell you everything that you need to know about how Dallas feels about him.