The NBA offseason is heating up heading into the draft night, and the Dallas Mavericks hold the keys to the future of the league. After securing the number one overall pick, Dallas now has two massive options. One involves using their pick to secure their next generational talent, such as Cooper Flagg, or they could shake up the league with a trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Both of these options set up the team for two completely different situations.
With only a 1.8% chance to secure the first pick, the Mavericks had their future altered when they secured the rights to draft Flagg. He, no doubt, will need time to mesh, but he has been the biggest story in college basketball since arriving in Durham.
After the absolute blunder that was the Luka Doncic trade, the Mavericks can now reunite their fans behind Flagg. While the Mavericks may not be a heavily favored team next season, Flagg will no doubt be the center of attention in Dallas. He will be ushered into the organization to become the future face of the franchise.
Flagg finished his one-and-done season at Duke, averaging 19.2 points on 48.1% from the field and 38.5% from three, with 7.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists. If the AP Player of the Year can live up to even half of his hype, he will be leading Dallas for years to come.
While this is expected, there is another avenue the Mavericks may take if they want to keep their championship window open and shake up the league.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has officially become open to the idea of leaving Milwaukee. This news has sent every franchise into a frenzy, and the player market and free agency could be hurt as a result. Antetokounmpo is a top-three player in the league, and every team wants a piece of him. With that, everyone will hold their assets and keep their cap space available if they believe they could land the former MVP.
Damian Lillard’s injury will sideline him for possibly all of next season, and Antetokounmpo can’t sit around and let the Bucks waste the rest of his Hall of Fame career. The Mavericks could present the number one pick as an escape route with a huge potential return.
If Flagg can hit his ceiling, he will essentially become a short Antetokounmpo, without the triple-double ability. He would lead what would most likely start the phases of another Bucks rebuild. With that in mind, surrounding Flagg with other young teammates so that they could build chemistry would be vastly beneficial for the franchise.
While in Dallas, Antetokounmpo would launch the Mavericks back into title contention. With Kyrie Irving projected to be back from injury in January, and the prospect of Anthony Davis being able to stay healthy, Dallas would insert themselves as a Western Conference favorite.
The package for Antetokounmpo would need to be big, with Daniel Gafford or Derik Lively most likely included to replace Brook Lopez in free agency. However, with the first pick, they have the upper hand in favorable packages.
For the Mavericks, it’s about winning now or winning later. On one hand, Flagg would present the opportunity to replace a beloved franchise feature in Doncic. He could help usher in the next phase of the roster, and learn and grow rapidly behind Irving, Davis and Klay Thompson.
If they decide to move the pick, Antetokounmpo would push the Mavericks to the top of the league. Not only would they be dangerous, but they would be heavily favored for the next few seasons. Either way, the Mavericks are crucial to unlocking the offseason.
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