The Dallas Mavericks are patiently awaiting the NBA Draft Lottery on May 12, as this upcoming Monday could be the first time fans have had any sort of positive hope for the Mavericks after their season spiraled out of control due to trading Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving tearing his ACL. Dallas has somehow never moved up in the draft lottery throughout franchise history, but perhaps this could finally be the year they catch a string of luck, as they desperately need it.
Whoever Dallas ends up selecting with that pick as well as whatever offseason additions they get will join this team with the hope of being able to keep the ship afloat until Irving returns from his torn ACL, and hopefully Dallas and GM Nico Harrison are smart in their talent evaluation when it comes to bolstering the playmaking and shot creation of this roster.
That never would have been a void Harrison would've needed to address this summer if he simply didn't trade Doncic and Quentin Grimes though, as both of his deadline moves made the Mavericks suffer in the short-term, and it's without a doubt that it could soon become long-term suffering if the Mavericks can't re-enter the contender sphere here soon.
Mavericks will have an early crack at Doncic in Vegas preseason affair
In a possible statement proving game for Harrison, it's already been announced that the Mavericks will likely face off against Doncic and the Los Angeles Lakers in an October preseason game in Las Vegas. Harrison wants to prove to the NBA world as soon as possible that his vision will reign supreme once this roster gets fully healthy and has a full training camp together, and it seems like he or the Mavericks want to kickstart their season by turning the tables on Doncic after his 45-point homecoming last month.
While Harrison and the Mavericks seem like they want to get on the right side of the PR train with this Doncic situation, whatever happens in this preseason contest ultimately won't change fan opinion on the trade, unless it culminates into something even worse, such as Doncic throwing another haymaker at the Mavericks. This seems like a faulty attempt at trying to win fans back a little by the Mavericks, and while neutral-site preseason games sometimes get announced earlier, this isn't something Dallas is traveling internationally for and they were clearly trying to send a message by announcing this game is happening well before the NBA postseason has ended.
It will certainly be exciting to see Doncic take on the Mavericks again, as fans will now have the opportunity to see this 3-4 times a year with the Lakers routinely, but this game has no stakes attached unless there's some sort of behind-the-scenes agreement from the Mavericks and Lakers for the teams to actually take this game seriously. Unless it's the final dress rehearsal of both Dallas and Los Angeles' preseason games, Doncic likely wouldn't even play past halftime, and he's notoriously taken the preseason lightly in every season he's been in the league, outside of his first couple of years.
This game could draw good optics and PR for the Mavericks if Doncic doesn't play much or has a rough shooting performance, especially if Anthony Davis has a really good game for the Mavericks, but the Mavericks shouldn't go all-out to win this game by any means. If Dallas can secure a solid victory against the Lakers and limit Doncic from going off, they could definitely shift the fan morale odometer ever so slightly back in their favor and generate some increased excitement for the regular season, but Dallas will need to do far more than beat Doncic in a meaningless game at a neutral site if they want to win any significant segment of their lost fanbase back.
