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New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, center, holds the Eastern Conference Championship trophy after Game 4 in the Eastern Conference finals NBA basketball playoffs series against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland, Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo\/Sue Ogrocki)<\/p>\n
Sue Ogrocki\/AP Photo\/Sue Ogrocki<\/p>\n
Mavericks<\/a> fans have endured a lot. No team in\u00a0NBA history has ever moved on from Hall of Fame-bound point guards quite like Dallas the last 30 years. And yet I still think there is something entirely new and strange and, for many, quite difficult about these NBA Finals.<\/p>\n I realize the San Antonio Spurs have had the stage for about a week now, and it feels like the first Victor\u00a0Wembanyama Finals <\/a>might be just cracking open a streak like Tim Duncan enjoyed. Our friends to the south already have five NBA championship banners, and there are more to come.<\/p>\n But while the 7-4 guy from France is all the rage, there\u2019s this thing going on with the New York Knicks and a little point guard named Jalen Brunson <\/a>\u2026<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n I don\u2019t really even know how to explain this, but I feel like a lot of Mavericks fans will be cheering for\u00a0Brunson. Such a nice guy off the court, such a ridiculously good player on the court. But everyone\u2019s also having this nagging feeling at the same time.<\/p>\n Is\u00a0Jalen Brunson\u2019s exit<\/a> the biggest mistake the Mavericks ever made?<\/p>\n I realize the\u00a0Luka trade is a monstrosity, and I\u2019ve called it worse than the Babe Ruth deal<\/a>. It owns a special place, not just in NBA lore, but in the history of awful professional sports trades. And keep in mind that Doncic is 27 years old, so that full story is yet to be written.<\/p>\n But there was no trade for\u00a0Brunson, not even the last-minute sign-and-trade owner Mark Cuban was counting on. The Mavericks could have paid him a four-year extension for about $55 million at the start of the 2021-22 season, and that would have been the end of it. Or they could have paid him that much during the season after Brunson had shown a bit of what he could do when Luka was hurt. Or, even after watching him score 41 in Game 2 against Utah with Luka out and helping Dallas to the Western Conference finals, they could have competed with or matched the money the Knicks were offering on a four-year deal.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n They didn\u2019t. They just let him go. And, in its own way, that makes this worse than all the other mistakes.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n