Why Have the Mavericks Been So Depressing This Season?

You would be hard-pressed to find a more miserable season in the history of the Dallas Mavericks than this one. There has been no shortage of blunders in the franchise’s past, but something about this past year has just been so taxing. Yes, Cooper Flagg is awesome, but he’s the equivalent of putting a Band-Aid on a bullet wound. The draft lottery gave an incompetent Mavericks organization an unjust opportunity at a bright future. When you disregard Flagg, this Mavericks’ season has had all the optimism of a Tubi horror movie.

Royal Blues: Why Have the Mavs Been So Depressing This Season?

Day-to-Davis Frustrated Fans to No End

Anthony Davis will always be remembered in a negative light in Dallas. That’s not his fault. The circumstances of his arrival, however, taint any positive impression he would have made. After being traded to the Mavericks in exchange for Luka Doncic, Davis played only 29 games in a Mavericks uniform. 20 of them came this season. To be fair, he looked good when he played, but he barely touched the court. We never got to see the ‘Big 3’ of Kyrie Irving, AD and Flagg play together, and in the end, it felt like death by a thousand cuts.

Davis has been traded since, which felt like a foregone conclusion since the day he first put on the uniform. His uniform hasn’t changed. You can find him and his street clothes in D.C. now. While the Washington Wizards and their fans must be optimistic about the thought of him and Trae Young playing together, they should take his time in Dallas as a stern warning.

Nobody is Having Fun

This is the biggest consequence of Kyrie Irving not stepping on an NBA court this season. An appearance of flair, showmanship and god-given ability is generally a trademark of Dallas basketball. At any given time in franchise history, there has always been a guy on the roster who can make you fall in love with basketball. The Mavs just don’t have that guy right now.

Flagg is amazing to watch for hoop-heads. He’s all business and an absolute dog. The showmanship that the Mavs faithful have become accustomed to is absent, though. It’s a hard contrast to the show-stopping guard play from Doncic, Irving, Spencer Dinwiddie and Jalen Brunson in seasons gone by.

So Many Clutch Losses

The Mavericks have lost 20 games by five points or less this year. It’s one thing to watch your team lose when they suck. Someone has to lose. When you watch your team come so close and always fall short, it stings differently.

Optimistic Mavericks fans will view this as a positive, as such close results surely mean that little improvement is necessary to win next year. It’s a dangerous game to rely on ifs, buts and maybes. The fact of the matter is that when you take this season in isolation, it’s pretty damning. The culture is currently based around losing. As this negative culture encroaches, the number of casualties on the roster increases.

When you want to win, having a team full of guys who expect to come in second isn’t going to work. Let’s hope this attitude is kicked, and this becomes the last atrocious season for the Dallas Mavericks.