Mavericks can’t trick their fans about long-term plan after rough start to season

There's nothing wrong with a gap year. Sometimes, taking a step back is important. But what exactly are the Dallas Mavericks bridging the gap between? Being a contender and not being a contender? In that case, I suppose 2025-26 could be looked at as a gap year. Just not a positive one. No, it's a gap to prepare fans for a future in which, despite a deep enough roster right now, doesn't have a particularly rosy outlook.

And this is where it's important not to let the Mavericks front office off the hook. If the plan is medium-term success and this team is simply biding its time until Kyrie Irving gets back, then fans are expected to believe that next year, a 36 year-old Klay Thompson, 33 year-old Anthony Davis, and 34 year-old Kyrie (coming off a serious knee injury) are going to lead a team to success. Oh, and that a 20 year-old Cooper Flagg will be ready to spearhead that team. That feels like a stretch — to say the least.

If the plan is long-term success, then the Mavs are essentially admitting that they're punting on the Luka trade, waiting for the veterans' contracts to expire, and then hopefully surrounding Flagg with younger talent. That doesn't seem too crazy — but it also goes against what Nico Harrison said directly after the Luka trade.

If the plan is immediate success... Well, I hope no one thinks that's the plan.

Frankly, I don't believe there ever was a long-term plan. Even with Cooper Flagg, an obvious franchise cornerstone, I'm starting to grow skeptical of the medium-term plan, too. Fans understandably feel like they were given the runaround by Nico Harrison and the front office about what this team is capable of. The on-court product doesn't match any of that.

Cooper Flagg can't be the beginning and the end of a long-term plan

A few rough games aren't going to cause me to jump off the Cooper Flagg bandwagon. But there's a cautionary tale about being gifted an incredible No. 1 pick and then not doing anything to help him succeed. In fact, the cautionary tale is of his teammate, Anthony Davis!

When AD was picked No. 1 by New Orleans in 2012, fans understandably thought the franchise was saved. By 2020, the Pelicans had won one playoff series in the previous seven seasons and Anthony Davis was headed to Los Angeles. They got a gift and immediately returned it to the store.

I'm not saying the Mavericks are headed that way with Cooper Flagg. Again... Four games. But I will say that this roster, even when healthy, can't be the finished product around Cooper Flagg. He wasn't the end of this team's roster building; he was the beginning. Now, fans just have to pray that there's some semblance of a plan. Whether it's short, medium, or long, fans won't mind — just show that there's a direction here.