Dallas MavericksDallas build around Cooper Flagg
Flagg and Irving will anchor a rebuilt squad. Dusty May must set a pecking order among the young wings and the many bigs.
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The Dallas Mavericks finished the 2025–2026 season with 26 wins and 56 defeats, 12th in the West and out of the playoffs.
A new framework around Flagg
Dallas begin again with a new front office and a new head coach. Masai Ujiri runs basketball operations and Dusty May takes charge of the bench. The 2025–2026 record is a reminder of the distance that still separates this team from the best sides in the West. For May, the first success will be to give clear responsibilities to a group in which youth sits alongside players already seasoned in the playoffs.
per game
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The new arrivals change the competition
Santi Aldama, Zaccharie Risacher, Marcus Sasser, Tarik Biberovic, Sergio de Larrea, Morez Johnson Jr. and Tobi Lawal are among the main signings. Aldama widens the options in the frontcourt, while Risacher adds a wing to develop. The Frenchman finds a new setting after Atlanta: his minutes will depend on what he brings to a rotation already well stocked on the wings, not on his former draft position.
- →Santi AldamaSanti Aldama · joined the squad
- →Zaccharie RisacherZaccharie Risacher · joined the squad
- →Marcus SasserMarcus Sasser · joined the squad
- →Tarik BiberovicTarik Biberovic · joined the squad
- →Sergio de LarreaSergio de Larrea · joined the squad
- →Morez Johnson Jr.Morez Johnson Jr. · joined the squad
- →Tobi LawalTobi Lawal · joined the squad
Six scoring reference points in the current squad
Points per game, 2025–26 regular season, all teams combined. Six selected players, not an exhaustive ranking.
Cooper Flagg, at the heart of the play
Cooper Flagg is the cornerstone of the project. Kyrie Irving returns after missing an entire season through injury. He offers another way to unlock a possession, through the dribble and individual creation. Our projection is to have them alternate in running the offence: Flagg can receive the ball on the move, while Irving draws the defence and then finds a teammate. That complementarity has yet to be built. Being on the preseason list is no confirmation of availability for the first game.
18 % of the team's scoring averages
18 % of the team's assist averages
Ratios of 2025–26 per-game averages; the player and the team have not necessarily played the same number of games. SNA estimates of scale, not official shares of totals.
A rotation still up for grabs
In our projection, Irving, Max Christie and Flagg would form the perimeter base. Aldama, Morez Johnson Jr., P.J. Washington, Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II would compete for the pairings in the paint. Naji Marshall can link the two areas, while Risacher and Caleb Martin offer other options on the wings. Marcus Sasser and de Larrea provide backup at point guard. This is a reading of the profiles, not a starting five announced by the coach nor a guarantee of playing time.
Creating
On the wings
In the paint
SNA season projection, not an official starting five or a guaranteed opening-night line-up. Availability as of 15 October: preseason estimates, not confirmation for the opener.
Three-point shooting, player by player
2025–26 regular season, all teams combined. Red line: club average, 34.4%. Selected players with at least one attempt per game.
Availability: the dated update
The SNA file consulted on 14 October lists Aldama, Lively II, Sasser and Morez Johnson Jr. as day-to-day. This update does not confirm their status for the first game.
The squad: 21 players
Official preseason list consulted on 14 October. It includes the players in camp and guarantees neither a permanent contract nor a place in the rotation. The positions below follow the club's categories, which are broader than the roles envisaged on the court.
| Player | Status | Pts | Reb | Ast | 3PT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guards | |||||
| Max Christie | 12.3 | 3.2 | 2 | 40.4 % | |
| John Poulakidas | – | – | – | – | |
| Marcus Sasser | RookieUncertain | – | – | – | – |
| Jett Howard | Uncertain | – | – | – | – |
| Kyrie Irving | Uncertain | – | – | – | – |
| Sergio de Larrea | Rookie | – | – | – | – |
| Centres and bigs | |||||
| Dereck Lively II | Doubtful | – | – | – | – |
| Dwight Powell | – | – | – | – | |
| Daniel Gafford | Doubtful | 9.5 | 6.9 | 1.1 | – |
| Moussa Cisse | Doubtful | – | – | – | – |
| Santi Aldama | RookieDoubtful | 14 | 6.7 | 2.9 | 35 % |
| Forwards · versatile positions | |||||
| Naji Marshall | 15.2 | 4.7 | 3.3 | 29.1 % | |
| Zaccharie Risacher | Rookie | – | – | – | – |
| Morez Johnson Jr. | RookieDoubtful | – | – | – | – |
| Caleb Martin | – | – | – | – | |
| P.J. Washington | 14.2 | 7 | 1.8 | 32.5 % | |
| Seth Lundy | – | – | – | – | |
| Cooper Flagg | Doubtful | 21 | 6.7 | 4.5 | 29.5 % |
| Tobi Lawal | Rookie | – | – | – | – |
| Tarik Biberovic | Rookie | – | – | – | – |
No SNA profile available: Jorge Diaz-Graham (forward). These names complete the 20 players in the table. 2025–2026 averages, all teams combined, for the six players with documented stats; they were not all recorded with the current club. "–": unverified data or three-point volume below one attempt per game. Availability as of 15 October: preseason estimates, not confirmation for the opener. The training-camp roster guarantees neither a permanent contract nor playing time.
Finding answers when the game slows down
The variety of bigs and Flagg's potential are assets. The flip side is a pecking order that has yet to be established: adding up the bigs guarantees neither space to attack nor effective pairings. Dallas will in particular have to organise their possessions against a set defence.
The weapons
- Flagg's potential.
- A variety of profiles in the frontcourt.
Areas to work on
- A hierarchy still to be built.
- Combinations to be worked out against a set defence.
An ambition to be measured over time
Making the playoffs is a sporting target; building a coherent team around Flagg is the work that must lead there. The first weeks will offer a chance to look at ball movement, the sharing of responsibilities and the place won by the newcomers. A run of results will not be enough to settle for good the pecking order of a group that is still learning.
Qualifying for the postseason is a sporting goal; building a coherent team around Flagg is the work that must get them there.
Key point: assess the combinations over several weeks, without turning the preseason into an established pecking order.
First regular-season game away to Houston on 22 October at 1:30 Brazzaville time (0:30 UTC). The game is played on the evening of 21 October in the United States. Time checked on 14 October, subject to change.
Find the Dallas Mavericks page and the page for the first game.
Saturday 17 October 2026 at 01:00, Brazzaville time · match centre
- The team’s live schedule appears here.
Countdown to tip-off.