Last summer, the Mavericks denied the New York Knicks\u2019 request to interview Jason Kidd for their coaching job. The Knicks initially expressed interest in a host of coaches already under contract \u2014 including Minnesota\u2019s Chris Finch and Chicago\u2019s Billy Donovan \u2014 but were blocked from pursuing any of them and ultimately wound up hiring Mike Brown, who was then a free agent.<\/p>\n
On the heels of blocking Kidd from interviewing with New York, Dallas rewarded him with a contract extension. Kidd will soon wrap up his fifth season as the Mavericks\u2019 coach. All indications are he will be back for a sixth season. The Athletic has previously reported that Mavericks team sources have poured cold water on the possibility of Kidd transitioning into a front-office role.<\/p>\n
Earlier this week, in an appearance on the \u201cIntersections\u201d podcast, minority owner Mark Cuban intimated that Kidd played a role in the decision to trade superstar guard Luka Don\u010di\u0107 in February 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat doesn\u2019t justify it for our coach and general manager to stand up and trade our best player,\u201d Cuban said.<\/p>\n
In that same podcast, Cuban said he regretted selling his majority stake in the Mavericks to Miriam Adelson and her son-in-law, Dumont.<\/p>\n
Those in Dumont\u2019s orbit were baffled that Cuban still can\u2019t seem to move on from a business decision he agreed to more than two years ago. A report from longtime NBA reporter Marc Stein in February that Cuban\u2019s interest in buying back a majority stake<\/a> of the Mavericks was met with an eye roll.<\/p>\n Dumont is moving forward with plans to build an arena and a surrounding entertainment district, which will open ahead of the 2031-32 season. Welts said this week that in addition to an arena, the project will include a new corporate headquarters, a new practice facility, a hotel and a medical facility. In the meantime, Dumont is making a 10-figure investment in the corporate headquarters that the Mavericks already occupy in Dallas\u2019 Design District.<\/p>\n At the start of this season, Flagg was one of the three No. 1 picks on the Mavericks\u2019 roster, along with Irving, chosen first in 2011, and Davis, selected first in 2012. Davis, whose New Orleans team went 27-55 in his rookie season, predicted in September that Flagg would have a much different experience than he did.<\/p>\n \u201cHe doesn\u2019t have to do as much as a normal No. 1 pick has to do,\u201d Davis said then. \u201cWe are still going to ask him to be Cooper Flagg, for sure. But the pressure is not going to be on him as much as a usual No. 1 pick who is going to one of the worst teams in the league.\u201d<\/p>\n \n The Mavericks are hoping to build the future of the franchise around their 19-year-old star Cooper Flagg. (Benny Sieu \/ Imagn Images)<\/p>\n The reality is that Flagg has been asked to do everything for the Mavericks, and that his team will likely finish the season with a worse record than Davis\u2019 team did in 2012-13. Flagg has spent much of his first season playing out of position at point guard. The Mavericks signed D\u2019Angelo Russell to be a stopgap solution at the position with Irving out, but Russell appeared in only 26 games in a Mavericks uniform before he was sent to the Wizards in the Davis trade.<\/p>\n![\"Cooper](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/USATSI_28630622-scaled.jpg\")
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