2026 NBA draft thread

[F Gump]

1  What we have and what we lost due to Nico cannot be changed. How we use what we have is what matters.

2  I don't think that any GM would ever follow my logic because they have more pressure to perform and get the Mavs back on track as fast as possible. The question is if as fast as possible back into contention is the best way. Or if a slower and more patient approach is actually more likely to succeed.

1 Yep, exactly. We start here.

2 I think it's a mistake to INSIST on continuing to be bad for a while, with the idea that it's good for them to continue to lose. There is NO VALUE AT ALL in being bad and losing games. Strip the team of talent, to ensure they suck? No.

The net effect of winning is that it makes the players look better if you decide to trade someone, and it motivates CF and the other keepers. It also forces the players to compete for minutes. There is only one downside to winning, which is that it messes up draft picks as you tank, but since they don't have picks, then it's not a factor for the Mavs.

If a GM wants to trade all future assets (picks, young players who need to be developed, etc) then yeah, that's not a good plan, but I don't think anyone is envisioning that as a possible choice that an Expert GM would make. But with what they have to work with, and reasonable tweaks, do what you can to win asap, as much as possible.

I also think that the presence of CF accelerates the potential to get much better faster. Add another elite youngster in the draft, which is very possible, and it's time to win now, as fast as CF and the 2nd guy are ready. Don't hold them back!