Mavericks' title hopes suddenly hinge on Nico Harrison pulling off stunning repeat

Dallas Mavericks fans will never forget the 2023-24 season, as that was the year that Dallas made the NBA Finals since 2011, the year of the franchise's lone title. Dallas ultimately lost the Finals in five games to the Boston Celtics, but that season showed that Nico Harrison built an excellent roster around Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving to contend for championships.

Even though Doncic and Irving led the way, the play of the role players also helped lead them to the promised land, with the emergence of Derrick Jones Jr. being a factor all season long. Jones Jr. was the Mavs' best defensive stopper, as he took pride in guarding one of the other team's best players every single night, and the best part about him was the fact that Dallas and Harrison signed him to a veteran minimum contract in the summer of 2023.

Dallas was balling on a budget with Jones Jr., and they need that same type of impact from a player on a cost-friendly contract this summer. It looks like the best player to have a major impact like Jones Jr. did in Dallas is D'Angelo Russell, as the Mavericks signed him to a team-friendly two-year deal on the opening night of free agency.

Mavericks need D'Angelo Russell to pull a Derrick Jones Jr.

Even though Russell won't have an immense defensive impact like Jones Jr. did, he still has the chance to be a major difference-maker immediately. Russell is poised to be the starting point guard for the first half of the season until Kyrie Irving returns, and the Mavericks desperately need him to be solid on day one.

With Harrison electing to go the free agency route to find Dallas's stopgap guard, and not trading for anyone, they need Russell to be a home-run signing. He has the passing, shooting, and playmaking to hold down the fort until Irving returns, and him having a Jones Jr.-level impact would change everything for the Mavericks.

It seems like all of the best teams around the league always hit on these players on team-friendly contracts, and it can make all the difference down the final stretch of the season. Elite teams typically have a few players who play big roles for them while also playing on budget contracts, and this has become the name of the game. With the new CBA, finding diamonds in the rough is the way to go, and even though Russell isn't the household borderline star that he used to be, he has the chance to bounce back and prove to the world that he can still contribute on a contender.

The 2024-25 season was quietly a down year for Russell, as he shot a career-low 39.0 percent from the field and 31.4 percent from downtown, and he struggled with inconsistency. This led to him signing a two-year, $11.7 million deal with the Mavericks this summer with a player option after the first season.

This would have been for far less than anyone would have expected if this were a few years ago, as he just averaged 18.0 points for the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2023-24 season, and his new deal with the Mavericks has the chance to be the steal of the summer. With the Mavericks only signing Russell, along with Dante Exum in free agency, they need them both to step up to the plate in their roles, and Russell has the potential to knock it out of the park.