How Can Dallas Mavericks 'Nail' Offseason Following NBA Finals Appearance?

The Dallas Mavericks are a contender, but what can help them get over the hump and hoist the Larry O'Brien?

May 13, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) and center Dereck Lively II (2) and forward Tim Hardaway Jr. (10) look on during the second half against the Oklahoma City Thunder in game four of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

The Dallas Mavericks are fresh off an NBA Finals appearance, albeit a quick one, having lost the series in five games to the Boston Celtics.

While the Mavericks were able to find their way through a gauntlet of a Western Conference, they eventually fell short against an overpowered Celtics team. This leaves them needing to make offseason tweaks to run things back for another attempt at the franchise's second championship.

What does a successful offseason look like for the Dallas Mavericks? ESPN's Kevin Pelton laid out a plan for the Mavericks to win the offseason.

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"The Mavericks already did the hard work, putting enough talent around Luka Doncic to get to the NBA Finals with Kyrie Irving as the only key contributor older than 27," Pelton wrote.

Given the nature of Irving's talent, which relies less on athleticism and more on his elite skill, he's not set to regress in a big way. The rest of the contributors being under 27 means this team isn't a contender on its last leg, but rather one that can improve and adapt after getting key experience on the highest level.

So, what should be the team's focus? Retaining key contributors, of course. One player with an expiring deal is Derrick Jones Jr., who starred in the playoffs, elevating his game to match the moment.

"The task this offseason is to shed about $10 million in payroll, freeing Dallas to offer starter Derrick Jones Jr. a deal using the non-taxpayer midlevel exception after he emerged as an ace defender while playing for the veteran's minimum," Pelton continued.

Creating cap space is not an easy task. The Mavericks have quite a few players making over $10 million, though, and they can begin to break up those contracts, starting with Tim Hardaway Jr., who the team can afford to move off of.

"Ideally, the Mavericks will break Tim Hardaway Jr.'s $16.2 million expiring salary into smaller pieces that they can dump while using cash and a limited stock of second-round picks," Pelton wrote.

Continuity has proven to find success in the NBA, with the last four champions being proof of such. The Milwaukee Bucks were a homegrown team. The Golden State Warriors won one final championship with their core from their dynasty. The Denver Nuggets were homegrown and fell short plenty. The same goes for the team that took down the Mavericks this past season, the Celtics.

Each of those teams maintained their core of players while making small tweaks to address needs. The Mavericks are now in that boat. They've got a championship-level team, and a few big trade victories could be what they need to secure a second NBA title.

READ MORE: Mavericks Labeled 'Dream Fit' for Jerami Grant Trade from Trail Blazers

Stick with MavericksGameday for more coverage of the Dallas Mavericks throughout the NBA offseason. 

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