Ill-fated Jalen Brunson decision continues to haunt Mavericks, especially after guard won 2026 NBA Finals MVP

"Is Brunson worth all of that money, though? That's debatable," wrote Bleacher Report NBA columnist Zach Buckley, who graded the signing as a C. "He struggles getting to the line, doesn't stripe many off-the-bounce threes and is more of a combo guard than a floor general, which isn't ideal for a 6-foot-1 player."

Brunson, however, proved to be worth the money and then some for New York. In four seasons with the Knicks, he has made three All-Star Games, earned three second-team All-NBA nods and won the 2024-25 Clutch Player of the Year award. 

What's been just as valuable for the Knicks as his on-court skills are his leadership and unselfishness. Brunson signed a four-year, $156.5M extension with New York in 2024 but left $113M on the table to provide more cap room. The extra cash allowed New York to acquire center Karl-Anthony Towns and guard Mikal Bridges in blockbuster trades with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Brooklyn Nets.  

The Mavericks clearly didn't realize what they had in Brunson, and that has left former principal owner Mark Cuban (now a minority owner) with regrets. The owner told the "Run Your Race" podcast in November 2025 that the team could've re-signed Brunson during the 2021-22 season but opted not to because he thought they could land another star to pair with Doncic. 

"[Brunson] wasn't [Brunson] then," he said. "We knew [his game] was good, but we didn't know it was that good."

A league investigation found the Knicks guilty of initiating free-agent discussions with Brunson before the legal tampering window, and they lost a 2025 second-round pick. That did give them an edge over Dallas in contract negotiations. Still, he may not have re-signed with the Mavericks. The Western Conference squad clearly wanted another star, which is why they landed guard Kyrie Irving in a trade with the Nets in February 2023. 

Irving and Doncic led the Mavericks to the 2024 NBA Finals but lost to the Boston Celtics in five games. The franchise has plummeted since. 

Dallas dealt Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for forward Anthony Davis (now with the Washington Wizards) in February 2025, a move that continues to haunt the team. In their first full season without the high-scoring star, the Mavericks went 26-56. Irving missed last season after suffering an ACL tear in his left knee in March 2025. On the bright side, forward Cooper Flagg won Rookie of the Year, but that still does little to soothe the franchise's pain. 

Watching Brunson hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy must be bittersweet for Cuban and company. They're happy the player they drafted and developed has reached the pinnacle of basketball. But they wish he wasn't doing so with another team.