Mavericks must kick off offseason with no-brainer move before Cooper Flagg arrives

The Dallas Mavericks' 2025 offseason has been filled with triumph over the last month or so, as they won the NBA Draft Lottery and will select Cooper Flag with the No. 1 overall pick in exactly two weeks after only having a 1.8 percent chance of landing the first pickk, but it has also been filled with rumors surrounding head coach Jason Kidd that came out of nowhere.

The New York Knicks want to make Kidd their next head coach, and while there is reportedly mutual interest in making this happen, Dallas holds the cards in how this situation will ultimately go. Kidd is under contract with the Mavericks until after the 2026-27 season, and the first move that Dallas needs to make this offseason with Kidd is overwhelmingly clear.

They need to shut down all of these Kidd-to-Knicks rumors by making it evident that they won't accept the Knicks' request to interview him, while also signing him to a restructured contract extension to triple down on him being the coach of the team in the future.

Mavericks must crush Jason Kidd rumors before they spiral

Dallas signed him to a contract extension in the middle of their run to the 2024 NBA Finals, and considering how well he has done ever since joining the Mass before the 2021-22 season, they can show their appreciation and confidence in him by ensuring he won't be going anywhere anytime soon.

With Flagg visiting Dallas next week, the last thing that he needs is uncertainty surrounding his future head coach, and the Mavericks should end this saga now while they still can. Making sure that the Kidd rumors are no longer a story will be crucial for the beginning of Flagg's Mavericks journey, and Nico Harrison and Patrick Dumont should prioritize stability in the coaching department this summer.

While former assistant coach Alex Jensen has already departed this summer to go coach at the University of Utah, the Mavericks can make sure they don't lose anyone else by denying the Knicks permission to interview Kidd (if they end up asking) and by signing him to another extension.

Making sure Kidd is around deep into the future will help ensure that Flagg begins his NBA career with a comfortable coach who has been around for multiple seasons, while also likely encouraging other coaches on staff to remain in Dallas. Sean Sweeney, in particular, has received interest from around the league this offseason, as he was among the finalists for the Phoenix Suns' head coaching job and has drawn interest from the San Antonio Spurs to be an assistant coach under Mitch Johnson.

Signing Kidd to a contract extension or plainly making it clear they have no interest in allowing him to walk would likely make Sweeney want to stay, as he has coached alongside Kidd for years, and this would smooth things out right before Flagg's visit. The Mavericks must guarantee that Flagg's visit goes as smoothly as possible, and ensuring they don't have any uncertainty surrounding their coaching staff is step one in that process.

It's overwhelmingly obvious that Dallas needs to figure out their situation with Kidd by showing that they don't have any interest in him leaving this offseason, and they should do this before making any other moves.