Man, it has been a brutal 19 months since Luka Doncic got traded. And let’s be real, it felt even longer than that, especially after those Mavericks fans were riding high, making the NBA Finals just 29 months ago, thinking they had the next decade locked down. When that trade went down, it was impossible to see how Dallas would ever bounce back. I’m telling you, I couldn’t picture a world where watching the Mavericks would feel like joy again for ages. Then, out of nowhere, Dallas lucked into Cooper Flagg. His rookie year? Yeah, it was fun, but so much of the old baggage from the previous year was still hanging around. They had to clean house: fire the guy who made the trade, then deal away the player they got in that Doncic swap. Eventually, a new regime rolled in and moved on from the coach who oversaw all that mess. And *then* Dusty May got hired. And just like that, he gave the city of Dallas something that was way, way overdue: a real shot at feeling joy again.
From Lifeless to Lit: Dallas Is Feeling It Again
If you know Dallas, you know how that city felt in the spring of 2025: it was just sad, lifeless, and honestly, hurting. Look, everyone knows the DFW metroplex is a football town at heart, but the Cowboys play out in Arlington, which is like 30-45 minutes away, and let’s be honest, they’re perpetually disappointing anyway. Same deal with the baseball team, the Rangers. So, Dallas proper, the city itself, it really only feels truly alive when the Mavericks are actually *good*. For over a year and a half, things just felt off. Those conversations that used to buzz about the Mavs? Silence. Downtown on game days? Crickets. And the thought of playoff basketball felt years away, like a distant dream. Even with Flagg as the clear future, there was still a ton of skepticism about how this team would *really* rebound. But then basketball started less than two weeks ago, and suddenly, those worries started to melt away. The Mavs are finally making us feel real basketball feelings again. I saw it myself at their game against the Rockets on Friday night: the arena felt like it did way back when. The city, the people around me, they were alive again. And Mavericks forward Naji Marshall? He definitely noticed, too. He dropped a tweet saying, “AAC back to blowing the roof off wowwwww top 5 feeling 😭…” October 31, 2026. You don’t get that kind of energy when things are “off.”
May’s Magic: The Antithesis of the Past
So, what actually changed? This team is, for the most part, the same squad as last season. Well, like I said, the final piece of moving past all that old mess was getting a new coach. And May? He’s been a total breath of fresh air. This guy is *always* smiling, just radiating joy every time he talks. He’s personable in a way that, frankly, Jason Kidd just wasn’t. He’s constantly hyping up his guys, showering them with praise when they play well. He is, in every single way that matters, the complete opposite of everything that went down before he got hired. The craziest part? The team even plays like an extension of him. They root for each other, they crash the boards together, they genuinely have fun zipping the ball around, and most importantly, they play for the city of Dallas. May even put it perfectly himself, talking about the synergy between the coaches and the front office: “We’re all working together. We’re trying to represent.” Those are the words, man. That’s the vibe.
It’s been a long road back for Dallas fans, but those “basketball feelings” are definitely back in the air. The energy in the AAC is electric, the city is buzzing, and it feels like there’s finally something genuine to look forward to with this squad. This early season has seen the Mavs completely transform the mood around the team, and that’s a huge deal.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Mavs Moneyball.
Leave a Reply