Predictions
Obviously, neither of those scenarios are likely to happen for the Dallas Mavericks. Somewhere in the middle is much more reasonable. Doncic and Smith should show signs of improvement, though they won’t be All-Stars just yet. Barnes will incrementally improve as he has nearly every season, and a reduced workload will increase his efficiency.
Those three will help the Mavericks win more games than last year, but not enough. The Mavericks will look like a possible playoff contender early on, but Doncic will eventually hit the rookie wall, and minor injuries to Nowitzki and/or Matthews will make the team realize they’re still a year away.
Still, the addition of Doncic and Jordan boosts the team by more than ten wins over last year. The team would be good enough to compete for an Eastern Conference playoff spot, but against the murderous West, they’re still a tier below true playoff teams.
Still, they’ll be way better than the Kings and Atlanta Hawks. Thanks for passing on Luka! Our final prediction? A 37-45 record, finishing 11th in the West.