Mavericks need Masai Ujiri to abandon his favorite draft philosophy

The Dallas Mavericks and their fans are lucky to have lured Masai Ujiri back into the NBA, but Ujiri will be tested right off the bat in Dallas with the 2026 NBA Draft in June. Ujiri has a track record of selecting long and athletic wings in the draft, but the Mavericks' biggest positional need right now is a point guard or shooting guard, so Ujiri and new GM Mike Schmitz are going to need to break the trend of Ujiri's typical draft philosophy.

Two-way wings that are lengthy are highly coveted in the NBA right now, as they can be the most game-changing type of players if they reach their potential. However, Dallas already has a budding superstar in Cooper Flagg that fits this mold, as well as a high-level role player in P.J. Washington who fits this description, and they may even bring back veteran 3-and-D wing Khris Middleton this summer.

Masai Ujiri needs to avoid drafting a wing at pick No. 9

Drafting a long wing such as Nate Ament or Yaxel Lendeborg would be a lot harder to justify for Ujiri and company at this draft, even though they fit the type of player he typically goes after. Make no mistake, Ujiri has a stupendous record of finding talent with these types of players.

He's drafted the likes of Scottie Barnes, Pascal Siakam, and OG Anunoby, but this type of player simply wouldn't make sense for Dallas unless they are bent on shopping Washington and letting Middleton walk in free agency this summer.

This would be a different story if Dallas landed inside the top four of the draft, and someone like AJ Dybantsa or Caleb Wilson was available, as they are talented enough to override fit concerns, but this isn't the case when picking at nine.

The Mavericks have too much at stake to not select a guard

Dallas either needs to focus on finding their point guard of the future next to Flagg with someone like Kingston Flemings, Keaton Wagler, or Mikel Brown Jr., or focus on the best possible fit next to Flagg and Kyrie Irving by selecting a 3-and-D two guard like Brayden Burries.

It's not as if Ujiri is incapable of drafting guards or centers, as he's drafted Ja'Kobe Walter, Malachi Flynn, and Collin Murray-Boyles in recent seasons, but he's seen less success in this department compared to the wings he's selected. While building for the future is important for Dallas, they already have the foundation of a solid roster, so focusing on drafting for positional need should override Ujiri's typical philosophy of selecting a lengthy wing.

The Mavericks have to nail this pick, given they have no control of their first-round picks until 2031 after this draft. There's simply no reason to add another play-finishing wing at this juncture, given Flagg's on-ball skills haven't fully developed yet.

Ujiri and company could definitely look to draft a flyer wing at pick 30, as that would be a far more suitable spot to simply take the best talent available, but this pick is simply too crucial for the Mavericks not to take their biggest positional need into account.

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