Just over a month after trading Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers, the Dallas Mavericks were hit with another major blow that ultimately destroyed their season. Kyrie Irving tore his ACL in a game against the Sacramento Kings, and their dreams of making a deep playoff run were turned to dust.
Entering the offseason, among Dallas' main priorities was replacing Irving by signing a stopgap point guard in free agency to run the show while Irving is sidelined. They ended up signing D'Angelo Russell to a two-year deal to fill this role, and even though the Mavs were in some trade rumors for some guards such as Jrue Holiday, Lonzo Ball, and Collin Sexton, they stood pat with the roster they have, along with re-signing Dante Exum.