Dallas Mavericks Standings Prediction, Mavs Trade Ideas & X-Factors For The 2025-26 NBA Season

Dallas Mavericks Standings Prediction, Mavs Trade Ideas & X-Factors For The 2025-26 NBA Season

And they’ll reset Nitzky again for the lead. What’s going on, Mavs fans? Welcome into All Things Mavs. Appreciate all you guys tuning in, staying subscribed, staying in the comments, and liking these videos. I’m your host, Jimmy Crowder. Today, look, we’re at a slow point in the summer. I understand things get a little boring right now. So, I want to talk about three things with our Dallas Mavericks. Number one, where do I think the Dallas Mavericks finish next season in the Western Conference? Number two, what are some moves that the Mavs could still make this summer to improve the team going into next year? And then number three, who is the X factor for this Dallas Mavericks team? I think those are three topics that I can answer right now and that I want to know dive a little bit deeper into. So, I’m going to start off. I’m going to tell you where I think the Mavs finish next year. Before I do it, I want you to put it down in the comments. Just just let me know in the comments down below what seed do you think the Mavs finish as next season. I’m going to give you my reveal. So, you got three seconds. Three, two, one. I’ve got the Mavs as the fifth seed in the West next season. And I know that’s a little optimistic. I know there’s a lot of people that are going to tell you they’re going to miss the playin or they might not even make the playoffs or whatever, but I’m going optimistic. I think this Dallas Mavericks team is a legit five or six seed in the West. I think they stay out of the playin, but you could tell me a multitude of scenarios with the Mavericks next year and it would not shock me. If the Mavs finished top three, I would not be shocked. If the Mavs finish in the playin, I would be disappointed, but I would not be shocked because the Western Conference is just that tough. There are some things about this conference. I mean, this has got to be one of the toughest conferences in years. And I know the West is always tough, but this year it is a whole another beast. So, why do I have the Mavs as five, maybe six? I think the top four is pretty clear. It hurts me to say this, but I don’t have the Mavs as a top four team next year. There’s just a few more question marks with the Mavs than there are with these other teams. Number one, it’s the Oklahoma City Thunder. you know what they’re going to be. You know they’re going to be as good as they were last season, if not better. Uh look, this is a it’s just a team that’s just g going to continue to grow together and and unfortunately for the Mavs, that just means they’re going to be just as good. So, I still think they’re the clear-cut number one next year. Two and three, I think you could flip-flop either way, Denver and Houston. I’m not sure which ends up where. Probably I’d probably put Denver slightly above Houston number one because their main guy is younger and a little bit more reliable than Kevin Durant in Houston. But number two, I think they’re also just a more well-rounded team, and they’ve been together, their core has been together longer than this Rockets team has. But I put Houston right there. I mean, the only question mark I have with the Houston Rockets is besides Fred Van Fleet, they don’t really have anybody that I trust to handle the ball, like bring the ball up, set the offense up, get everybody going. Fred Van Fleet is really good at that, but other than him, I just don’t know if there’s anybody on the Rockets that I trust. Maybe Amen Thompson. I know Kevin Durant can handle the ball, but I’m not telling him to go be my point guard. Reese Shepard hypothetically should be that guy since he was the third pick in the draft last year, two years ago. Um, well, not this past draft, but the year before. Uh, he was the third overall pick. He should be that guy, but he didn’t look that good in summer league and he’s small. We’re just going to have to see. But those are my top three. The fourth team that I think is slightly better than the Mavs on paper is the LA Clippers. And there’s a lot of question marks with them. The reason I don’t have them as a top three team is because there’s just too many question marks. You’ve got guys like Kawhi Leonard can’t stay healthy. James Harden, who knows if he’s going to stay healthy. Bradley Beal was terrible last year, but on a new contract on a new team, maybe he’s good again. Chris Paul, 82 games last season, but this is his last year in the NBA. How much is he going to play? How effective is he going to be? Your backup center is Brook Lopez. Wasn’t good last year, but maybe a change of scenery kind of rejuvenates him a little bit. And then you’ve got guys like John Collins who is a great lob threat for James Harden, but is also kind of a question mark when it comes to how much has he bought in on offense. How much has he bought in on defense? He’s always shopped around. Why is he always shopped around if he’s that good of a player? Who knows? Um the Clippers though on paper that team is scary good. They are going to be a very good team next season. Uh if they can stay healthy, but that’s always a huge question mark when your main star is Kawhi Leonard. But that next tier for me is the Dallas Mavericks. It’s the Dallas Mavericks, the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Minnesota Timberwolves. Originally, I probably would have put the Lakers a little bit lower, but since they got DeAndre Aton, since they added Marcus Smart, I like what that team is now. Um, I think it’s good enough to be in that same conversation with the Mavs. The Minnesota Timberwolves have a lot more question marks and especially after losing to Kil Alexander Walker, I don’t really know about that team, but I would still put them at the same level as Dallas and the Lakers. All three of those teams, I think, have fair questions about each of them, but I think the Mavs, if you look at that group, that Mavs team, the Mavs team is probably the deepest and the most well-rounded of those three. And so, that’s why I’ve got them at that five seed. And I I I love what this team is looking like right now. They are a team that can go 10 deep. They can play 10 players every single night. And when you look at the regular season, a depth like that, a depth chart that you can dive into that long and that deep, like that is such a special thing. In the playoffs, rotations get shortened up a lot, but when it comes down to the regular season and winning games on a consistent basis on the regular season in 82 games, the Mavs have the team to do that. Their only question mark is again health. Can Anthony Davis stay healthy? Uh, is D’Angelo Russell going to be enough while Kyrie Irving is is hurt? Um, what happens with Klay Thompson? Is he going to stay healthy? I think he will. Is Cooper Flag going to be as good as we think he is? I think he will. But those are all valid questions about this team. But funny that I say this because that now kind of lines the Mavs and Clippers up as another four or five seed next year. And we’ll just have to see. I think the Mavs could definitely win a playoff series next year against them. But my goal for this team in the regular season, I’d love to see them finish fifth and then you got to win at least one playoff series. I don’t think this team needs to make a super super deep run to be considered a successful team, but they have the tools to do it. They have the team to do it and Cooper Flag is going to be a huge huge part of that. But it’s hard to really judge just how deep they can be or how deep they can go in the in the playoffs until we see what Cooper flag is in his rookie year. So that’s kind of where I see the Mavs finishing. Again, let me know in the comments where you disagree, where you think the Mavs end up next year. But now I kind of want to transition to what else can the Mavs do around the edges to make this team a little bit better? Because let’s be honest, there’s nothing major that’s happening this summer anymore. It’s all done. All the big things are done. Maybe Giannis asks for a trade and something crazy happens, but I don’t think the Mavs are going to be involved in that anyway. Maybe LeBron asks for a buyout, but that’s not going to happen. It’s it’s just not going to happen. Um, and so if you start looking around the edges, this team has to make a move. They currently have 15 players on guaranteed contracts. It’s not counting two-way guys. It’s not counting uh the exhibit 10 guys like Musa Cisay or Matthew Cleveland. Um, but you look at the 15 guys under contract. They’ve also agreed to terms with Dante Exom, who would be their 16th guaranteed contract, and you can’t have 16. You got to have 15 or less going into the regular season. Now, you can bring 16 into camp, but somebody’s got to get moved or cut or traded or something before the season starts to make it 15. So, Dallas has to do something. They still haven’t announced the Dante Exom signing. But my ideal trade and the one that has been kicked around the most at this point is a twofor one deal. You trade Omax Prosper and Jaden Hardy to Cleveland for Dean Wade. I think Dean Wade gives you some answers at the four. You don’t have a shooter like him off the bench. I think he would be a great option to come in. Maybe some nights he doesn’t play. Maybe some nights he plays I don’t know 10 to 15 minutes, something like that. I I could happily I would happily see that. Um and I just don’t think and Jaden Hardy have a role on this team next year. I really don’t. I I’m sorry to say that. I was super high on Omax Prosper coming into the draft. I still believe he can be a good NBA player, but I just don’t think he’s going to get the opportunity with the Mavericks. Cooper Flag basically plays the same position as him. PJ Washington basically plays the same position as him. Max Christie plays a similar position to him, and I think he’s already better. Uh, you could even say Anthony Davis, if you want to talk about a power forward, Anthony Davis even kind of plays a similar position as him, and that makes it really hard for him to go out and give it. Caleb Martin plays a similar position as him, and I think I’d rather play Caleb Martin and see what he can do next year. Naji Marshall is another guy. I mean, all these guys play a very similar position to Omax Prosper. I don’t think he’s going to get the minutes. And then you look at Jaden Hardy. The problem with Hardy is that the Mavs do need a guard. Yes, they need another guard because Kyrie is hurt. However, he’s not the kind of guard we need. He’s more of a go get a bucket, scoring two guard. We need the set it up, the passer kind, the D’Angelo Russell kind. A guy like Brandon Williams who can break down a defense and then, you know, kick it out, go get the go get his own shot, whatever it is. A guy like Dante Exom who’s going to slow things down. He’s also going to play defense. Jaden Hardy is a spot-up shooter. That’s what he’s best at is spot-up shooting. Can he get to the rim sometimes? Yes. But once he starts dribbling the ball, he gets a little erratic, a little out of control, and that makes it really hard to play him on a consistent basis. Not only that, but he’s also not a good defender. So, am I a hater a little bit? Maybe. I’m just not a believer in Jaden Hardy at this point. So, I would love a two for one deal. Ship those two out. Bring in a Dean Wade. Another deal on that I could see happening is maybe they ship out again two but nothing comes back. Maybe Omax has gone in one trade and Hardy’s gone in another and it’s just kind of a salary dump deal. Maybe they have to attach like a second round pick to each of them to trade them and just bring in like cash or a future second or something like that. If Dallas can do that, that opens up the door to keep Dante Exom, but also resign Kai Jones. And I think Kai Jones would be a good value signing. We saw what he did last year. He was a I mean just amazing on the on the uh two-way contract that he got last year. Just did some crazy things for the Mavs. I would love to keep Kai Jones around because he’s backup insurance. Like if Lively’s hurt, then your centers are Gaffford and Dwight Powell. And obviously Anthony Davis is going to play center minutes as well. But I would rather say, okay, Lively’s hurt, maybe Anthony Davis gets hurt. Then you have Daniel Gaffford, Kai Jones, Dwight Pal. that’s your new center rotation for a little while until those other two guys come back if they get hurt again. Neither of them are going to be injured going into the season. I prayed, knock on wood. Um, but that would give you a little bit more around the edges that I think would ultimately improve the team and do really be a positive for the Mavs if they could keep Kai Jones and Dante Exom. So, we talked a little bit about where I think the Mavs finish next season in the Western Conference. We talked a little bit about some of the moves I could see the Dallas Mavericks making to to finish the off seasonason. But last thing I want to talk about here is who I think the Mavs X factor is going into next season. And I want to be very clear, your top like the top six, seven guys for the Mavericks cannot be I I wouldn’t call them X factors. Like they are starters. They know their role. They are going to play on a consistent basis. I they’re going to get they’re going to do consistent things. Guys like Kyrie and D’Angelo Russell like those guys can’t be X-factors because they’re I mean Dlo’s starting most of the year while Kyrie is out and then Kyrie is Kyrie. Cooper Flag isn’t an X-factor. I mean, he’s the number one pick. He’s gonna be a star. He’s the future of this franchise. I wouldn’t call him an X-factor. He’s just a guy you need. Uh Anthony Davis is your star player. He’s not in there. Derrick Lively, Daniel Gaffford, those are two centers that are going to swap starting minutes. Like those are all guys. And then Klay Thompson, I’d put Klay Thompson in that mix as well of guys that like you know what to expect. Like their role is very defined. They are going to go out and do their thing every night. It’s not going to be like, oh, one night they’re just, you know, I don’t really know. I mean, define X-factor however you want, but I think your X-Factor is a guy that comes in and brings you a spark and changes the game and changes the game in different ways every single time he plays. And that guy for me is Naji Marshall. I think Naji Marshall is going to have a huge year for the Mavericks. You got to remember last year he played some of the year with like this random illness that would keep him out for like five games at a time. Then he’d play five games, then he’d miss five games, then he’d play 10 games, he’d miss two games, and then he’d play 10 games, and he’d miss a game. All because of this random sickness. And I think that did him a disservice. Now, this guy had career highs across the board. Points, assists, rebounds, steals, free throw percentage, field goal percentage, all career highs with the Mavs. The only things that took a dip in my opinion for for Naji Marshall, well not just my opinion, the the the stats show it too, but his three-point percentage was down and his defense wasn’t as good as I think Mavs fans were expecting to see. His three-point percentage was right around 27% and when he finished his last year with the Pelicans, he shot the three ball at 39%. Which is a huge difference. And I think a little bit bit of that is just getting his feet under himself and getting reestablished on a new team and all this other stuff that comes when you change teams and you deal with an illness and you get suspended because you punch Yousef Nerkach. I mean all those things I think just affected him finding his rhythm and his jump shot. I think he’s going to come in next year and find that shot again and especially on a team that needs him to shoot that well. I think he’s going to be a really important player. Another thing, like I said, his defense, I think, is going to be better than what we saw last year when he was in his with the Pelicans. The Pelicans played the Thunder in the first round of the playoffs two years ago. Naji Marshall was the primary defender on Shay Gildas Alexander and did a really, really good job. And I kind of expect that Naji Marshall to come back and be that guy for the Mavs next season. Now, there’s other guys that people have thrown at me as X-factors like uh Max Christie, Caleb Martin, Dante Exom. Some people have said Jaden Hardy. Some people have said Omax Prosper. I’ve already kind of made my case for why I don’t think Jaden Hardy or Omax Prosper could really fit that bill. But let’s talk a little bit about Caleb Martin. My expectations for Caleb Martin are not high. I’m just going to be honest. Offensively, he just doesn’t do it didn’t do enough for me in Dallas. Now, we’ve seen when he played for Miami, even a little bit while he played for Philadelphia, like he is a much better offensive player than what we saw as Mavs fans, but I don’t want to depend on him too much. I just I just don’t not offensively at least. Defensively, I think yeah, he could make a difference, especially as a point of attack defender. That could really help the Mavs, but he still has a lot to prove to me. Max Christie, I love that kid. I am so excited about that kid taking another leap. I think he could even be as good be good enough to step into the starting two guard role over Klay Thompson by the end of next season. The reason I’m not calling him an X-factor is because I think I know what I’m going to expect out of Max Christie every night. I think he is a very consistent, a very steady player. Naji Marshall is a guy that yes, he’s consistent and steady, but he has a much like when he is on, it’s like a 30 point night. It’s a 25 point night. It’s a near triple double because he does a little bit of everything. With Max Christie, you’re not going to have a ton of like 20 plus point nights. You’re going to get like 10 to 15, maybe 18 points a night. And that’s great because that’s exactly what you’re asking him to do. With Naji, you might have a 10-point night, but on that 10-point night, you’re also gonna have like 10 assists or 10 rebounds or eight and eight or maybe you have 25, eight and eight, whatever it is. That’s kind of why I call Naji Marshall this Mavericks team X factor. You know, another guy that I think could be in that discussion is Brandon Williams, especially before Kyrie comes back. I think Brandon Williams is going to have a huge role on this team. I think he’s going to do a lot, especially backing up D’Angelo Russell. Only reason I’m not going to call him the X factor is because when Kyrie comes back, which I would assume is going to be closer to the playoffs, I don’t know that Don that Brandon Williams is going to play that often. And the other reason is that, and I kind of just said his name, but Dante Exom, there’s going to be nights where we need more Exom and less Brandon Williams. There’s going to be nights where we need more Brandon Williams and less Dante Exom. When I think about an X Factor, that kind of guy is irreplaceable. Naji Marshall is irreplaceable. the stuff that he does on this team is irreplaceable. Um, and that’s kind of why I put him in that role. But let me know if you disagree. Tell me in the comments. Tell me who you think the X factor on this team is. Maybe you think I’m a complete Just tell me that. I want to know. I want to hear it. I want to respond to all your comments. I appreciate all you guys tuning in. As I said at the top of the show, make sure you subscribe. I’m trying to continue to grow my subscribers. I’m right over 3,000. I’d love to hit 5,000 before long. That’d be a huge milestone for me. Make sure you give this video a like. And like I said, hit me up in the comments. I get my do my best to respond to everyone and I’m going to keep trying. If I don’t respond to your comments on YouTube, hit me up on Twitter, hit me up on Instagram, hit me up on Tik Tok. My Tik Tok is Jimmy_Crower, but if you search all things Mavs, it’ll probably also pop up. So, thanks for tuning in. I’ll talk to you next time. [Music] All things Mavs. [Music] And they’ll reset. Nitzky again for the lead. Bang. [Music]

Today on ALL THINGS MAVS, I break down where the Mavericks will finish in the Western conference. I also talk about who the Mavs can trade for and what the roster may look like on opening night. I also break down who the Mavs X-Factor will be next season.

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