Mavericks’ tank may bring Dallas the next Kyrie Irving in 2026 NBA Draft

The Dallas Mavericks have now lost 10 of their last 12 games, and after shutting down Kyrie Irving and trading Anthony Davis, the Mavericks quietly announced that their focus is on the future. The playoffs are already out of the picture for Dallas this season, and them dropping games down the stretch could lead them to their next Kyrie Irving in the 2026 NBA Draft if the draft lottery goes their way again.

Losing as many games as possible is at the front of most Mavericks fans' minds as the 2025-26 season winds down, and an elite tank job could help Dallas land Darryn Peterson from Kansas to be Cooper Flagg's running mate for years to come. Peterson has been one of the best players in college basketball when he's on the floor this season, and of any of the top prospects in this year's draft, Peterson makes the most sense as a long-term fit next to Flagg.

An anonymous NBA scout told The Smoking Cuban that Peterson is the Mavericks' best potential fit of anyone in the 2026 draft's first tier of players, including Cam Boozer and AJ Dybantsa. Landing him would give Dallas the perfect Kyrie Irving successor once he decides to hang the jersey up.

Darryn Peterson would be the perfect Kyrie Irving replacement

Peterson is averaging 19.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 47.2 percent from the field and 40.5 percent from downtown, leaving the college basketball world in awe. Peterson is one of the best guard prospects that this league has seen in some time, and NBA Draft guru Sam Vecenie of The Athletic sees some similarities between Peterson and Irving's freshman seasons at their respective schools.

Vecenie compared Peterson's injury-riddled season at Kansas to Irving's lone season at Duke, and commended Peterson for playing through this hamstring injury. Irving missed real time as a freshman at Duke due to a toe injury, and while Peterson has missed some games as well, he is powering through and doing his best to play as much as he can.

Peterson has made it clear that he doesn't want to miss time, and he has proven that he is the most special guard prospect in this year's draft by a mile. But he might not top the draft boards due to AJ Dybantsa and Cam Boozer. Both players are having incredible seasons, and as Vecenie noted, Peterson has much more competition to become the No. 1 overall pick in this summer's draft than Irving did after his freshman season at Duke.

Irving was the clear-cut top player in the 2011 NBA Draft, even after playing just 11 games in college. Of the nine other players selected in the top 10 of that draft, only one player was selected to an All-Star Game, that being Kemba Walker. The competition in Irving's draft was much worse, but this could be exactly what the Mavs need to get their hands on their next star guard.

Peterson is not a lock to go first overall by any means (despite being the consensus No. 1 overall pick at this juncture), and if Dallas has their sights set on him, this is a major blessing for them. There is still plenty of basketball to be played, and with the nature of the lottery, the Mavericks will have much better odds to jump into the top three of the draft rather than landing at No. 1.

Getting lucky enough to land the No. 1 overall pick in back-to-back years seems impossible, but jumping into the top three this year is achievable if Dallas handles this strategically. The NBA has cracked down on tanking, but even if they stay where they are as the seventh-worst team in the league, they have a 23.4 percent chance to land in the top three. These odds will only increase if they slide further down the standings.

Dallas desperately needs to find a co-star to pair with Flagg as he enters his sophomore season, and Peterson may be a match made in heaven.

He's the definition of a three-level scorer, and his deadly jumper from anywhere on the floor would mesh well with Flagg's relentless ability to attack the rim and finish inside. Surrounding Cooper Flagg with as much playmaking as possible would be a good approach in the 2026 NBA Draft, and someone like Darryn Peterson would take a major offensive burden off his shoulders.

Peterson and Flagg would have the potential to form one of the best young duos that the Mavericks have ever seen, and the NBA world is extremely high on Peterson heading into this summer's draft.

One NBA scout told The Smoking Cuban that they attended a Kansas practice in Lawrence this season, and it seemed like Peterson went through the entire practice without missing a shot. This practice included a live five-on-five period, and shooting perfectly from the field through a whole practice is rare unless you're playing NBA 2K.

Veteran scouts with years of NBA experience said they'd never seen anything like it.

Peterson is the type of player that would change everything for the Mavericks if they could get their hands on him, and by the looks of things, they'd probably have to jump to first overall to draft him.

Peterson is the consensus No. 1 overall pick right now, and something drastic would have to change for him to lose this spot. His injuries, though, are bound to bring up some chatter during the predraft process, and the Mavericks just need to control what they can control by properly tanking and giving themselves the best possible odds to move up in the lottery again.