Building a Mavericks “dream team” if they picked right in every NBA Draft

2009 NBA Draft: Joe Ingles over Ahmad Nivins with the 56th pick

This is the furthest back we’ll go for this dream team. Admittedly, the plan was to only go back as far as the 2012 NBA Draft, but, spoiler alert, this team needed some depth at the forward position.

In the 2009 NBA Draft, the Dallas Mavericks held the 56th pick by way of a previous trade with the Portland Trail Blazers. With it, they selected Ahmad Nivins, a player who has never stepped foot in the NBA.

Nivins did play in Summer League for the Mavericks that year, but the 6-foot-9 forward never ended up realizing his hoop dreams, failing to reach the main stage.

Instead, the Mavericks should have reached into the pool of draftees and picked Joe Ingles, who ended up going undrafted in the 2009 NBA Draft.

By the time the second round rolls around, especially the back half of it, any player could be picked. So, it wouldn’t be unreasonable for a second-round guy to jump up into the second (something you’ll be seeing plenty of throughout this exercise).

Ingles has enjoyed a long, successful NBA career. He’s become known for his quality 3&D play and even finished as the runner-up for Sixth Man of the Year in 2021.

Even at 35 years old, he could still give a solid team minutes off the bench. His defensive presence isn’t the same as it once was, but his shooting is still there, and that would be a huge help on the Mavericks.