7 All-Stars Dallas Mavericks painfully passed on in NBA Draft

5. Charles Barkley 1984 NBA Draft (5th overall)

Mavericks selection: Sam Perkins (4th overall)

The Mavs selected Perkins fourth overall in 1984, and it should not be classified as a bust. He played in all 82 games in his first year and was on the All-Rookie team, which started a 17-year NBA career. In his six with Dallas, Perkins averaged 14.4 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.0 steal, and 0.9 blocks as he helped the Mavericks reach the playoff five times.

Perkins became an unrestricted free agent in 1990, and he signed with the Lakers. The 6’9 big man would go on to play in three NBA Finals and was a key rotation piece but never an All-Star during his career.

Dallas Mavericks miss on Charles Barkley by drafting Sam Perkins

Barkley went just one pick after Perkins and would go on to be an all-time great. The 6’6 forward averaged over 20 points per game in his second season and made the first of 11 straight All-Star appearances by year three. Sir Charles is a legend that was named one of the 75 greatest players of all time in 2021.

Charles Barkley was an All-Star for the final time in 1997. At that point, Dallas had won more than 30 games in a season just once in the last seven years. Drafting Chuck would have certainly altered the franchise’s history.