Despite a turbulent backend to the season, the Dallas Mavericks playoff chances have jumped slightly after an upturn in form — but should they push for the postseason, or take their foot off the gas with a view to the future?
Thursday night’s win in Orlando handed the Mavericks a 36th win of the season, and in doing so maintains their tentative grasp on a play-in berth with a half-game lead over the Phoenix Suns.
Eight games remain for Dallas to decide whether to keep pushing for a shot as the postseason, or begin tanking with a look towards the NBA Draft.
As a franchise, it is has endured more than most as the season winds down. Not only has the team had to come to terms with losing an era-defining player in Luka Doncic’s trade to the Lakers, but an offensive core decimated by injuries has left them shorthanded at a crucial juncture.
The Mavericks have certainly signalled their intent to the rest of the league having turned a corner in recent weeks, snapping a four-game losing skid and winning three of its next four.
The Sacramento Kings are also losing steam at just the wrong moment meaning a spot for the ninth seed — which means a potential opening home game in the play-in tournament — is very much in their sights.
With the likes of Kyrie Irving out indefinitely with a torn ACL and Daniel Gafford still battling a knee problem, ending the season on the winning side looks to be a uphill battle.
However, welcoming back Anthony Davis — who played just once for Dallas before fears over his injury history came true — should provide the offensive inspiration they need to prevail in the few winnable games remaining.
Dallas Mavericks Playoff Chances
According to the latest odds from NBA sportsbooks, the Dallas Mavericks are as long as +700 to make the playoffs.
Even if they scrape through a first successful play-in encounter, the chances of them beating potential opponents including the likes of the Warriors, Clippers or Timberwolves appears remote.
Although the return of Davis, Gafford and Dereck Lively II from a foot fracture before the play-in could give them a fighting chance of causing an upset, the odds would be against them.
It could mean Dallas are on course to join an unfortunate club of NBA teams to fail make the playoffs after winning the Western Conference Finals the year before, along with the 2004-05 Los Angeles Lakers and the 2019-20 Golden State Warriors.
Dallas Mavericks Predicted Draft Pick
In line with the latest NBA mock drafts, the Mavericks would have the 13th overall pick, which would position them nicely to pick up a solid future prospect in a deep NCAA class.
However, despite the Mavericks recent turnaround, ‘tanking’ their season could have potentially positive by-products. Keep losing, and that predicted 13th overall pick could move them into the single-digit draft spots and give them a mighty chance of good fortune to nab a top pick in the NBA lottery.
After the front office torpedoed the future of the franchise by trading Doncic, the feeling is picking up a top-4 player in the draft could be seen as a path to redemption by rebuilding for the future.
