It’s been a slow week for us at Mavs Moneyball, after a ton of games in a row, three days off feels weird. But I had family stuff and the season’s so long it didn’t make sense to bully the staff into things. But I did have a couple of questions for them to answer, and answer they did.
**Let’s be trope-y. What’s one thing you’re thank you’re thankful for (basketball adjacent but doesn’t need to be Mavs) and one basketball thing you’re looking forward to** **as we look ahead.**
**Matt**: I’m grateful for the opportunity to write and vent about basketball. I wholeheartedly recommend it as a coping mechanism, and I’m thankful for all the gifts the last year has brought outside of the world of basketball fandom, because, god damn, it’s hard to conjure a single fucking basketball-related development that has been remotely positive for Mavs fans in the Year of Our Lord 20 and 25. Cooper Flagg is great, and he’s giving us moments, but his presence on the floor for the Mavs is more of a gift that will be realized in seasons to come. This is me, forgoing the opportunity to dance on Nico Harrison’s professional grave, and that, my friends, is progress and growth. I am looking forward to Trade Deadline SZN and the 2026 NBA Draft. Happy Thanksgiving, I guess.
**Tyler**: I would like to co-sign Matt.
**Brent**: his is the toughest calendar year in Mavs history to answer this question. Every answer I can think of makes me sound like a curmudgeon. Oh well.
I’m grateful for roughly a quarter century of relevance and contention. Not always championship-caliber teams (though that’s often been the case), but almost always interesting. If someone became a Mavericks fan after the turn of the century, they’ve experienced very little bleak basketball—until now.
As this 5–14 start takes shape, watching a team with experienced role players and a talented rookie lose so many clutch games… it’s hard not to feel like there’s a ceiling when you don’t have stars on the floor.
I’m not looking forward to years of irrelevance—but I lived through the ‘90s. And there’s something about extended hardship that can make you yearn for a playoff berth instead of taking it for granted.
We should have had many more years of relevancy before the next rebuild in the wilderness. But now? I look forward to the thoughtful, competent decisions of an experienced, sober brain trust (assuming they can find a GM worth their keep) to help this franchise climb out of the hole—and reach even half the heights Dallas enjoyed just a year and a half ago.
**Michael**: The basketball/Mavs-adjacent thing I’m thankful for this Thanksgiving is the general perseverance surrounding the past year in Mavs Land. Yes, many fans have greatly curtailed their Mavs’ fandom, with some walking away from the team and the NBA entirely. That is their right and I personally don’t fault them for it whatsoever. Between what we witnessed and what has subsequently been reported, the Mavs had a veritable Grima Wormtongue in their midst, inciting a fall best described as high fantasy come to life. The primary through line during the tumultuous time? Both the staff at MMB and our readers. I’m legitimately thankful the MMB train kept rolling and that our readers continued to read and comment. Yes, we all do this for a variety of reasons, but one of those reasons is the community and interaction and I’m grateful this Tolkien-esque mess didn’t fully dislodge everything. I’m also thankful for what we get to look forward to, and that is the Cooper Flagg era. I have no idea what it could possibly look like or how long it will last, but landing the #1 pick is about the best possible thing that could happen after management self-inflicted an epic wound and I’m excited to have a player that will hopefully blossom into a superstar.
**Mette**: Despite Thanksgiving not being a thing in Denmark where I’m from (obviously), I’m thankful for the Mavs community. From the euros who still stick around, and the Dallas natives who are always engaged, it’s incredibly fulfilling and meaningful to be part of a community like that. We may disagree on a lot of things, but at least we have people to commiserate with. And remember that Finals run? That was an amazing time to be part of this community, as well. Because, you see, I don’t have a lot of people around who are NBA sickos. Basketball even is not really a thing here, outside my local club. So to talk to people (online) every day about basketball is a blessing in my life. To listen to Pod Maverick and Kirk’s fan reaction show after is like checking in with likeminded friends. It’s a huge blessing in my life that I will never take for granted.
**Sudarshan**: Well, Thanksgiving isn’t a thing here in India, and it might sound corny as hell, but I’m grateful for Mavs Moneyball and the extended community.
Having a space where you can discuss the games (as miserable as they are) with true sports sickos (In the best way) really helps me balance out all the other craziness in my life. While watching all these sports is great, it’s not fun if you don’t have a group of people who you can argue/banter/debate/discuss/commiserate/celebrate with at the end of the day.
I’m looking forward to the end of this miserable season and hopefully a completely new era of Mavericks basketball, free from politics, ignorance, stupidity and most importantly - Free from Nico Harrison.
**Bryan**: I am thankful for the 2007-2009 NBA drafts. In a media landscape filled with whinging about the “post-LeBron face of the league,” the old guard just underneath him has stepped in admirably in his early season absence to support Jokic, Giannis, SGA, Luka, Anthony Edwards and Wemby I the first look at a post-LeBron NBA. Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, James Harden and even a washed and slightly dried Russell Westbrook have all turned in stellar performances to start this season and bolster teams of varying interest in the league. As Kevin Durant leads a dominant offense in Houston, Stephen Curry continues to break the brightest defensive minds in basketball, Westbrook rails against the loser stench blanketing Sacramento with every cell in his body and James Harden single-handedly staves off the assembly of a true Death Star in Oklahoma City one foul-grifting step-back at a time, appreciate the Uncs. Aging this gracefully isn’t normal.
As for what I am looking forward to, I would like to see trades. I want to see if NBA GMs will work to overcome their collective fear of the luxury tax aprons and actually make moves to either improve their basketball teams or fill their asset coffers. The time for standing pat in the mediocrity zone has passed. There is an 18-1 nuclear weapon being perfected in Oklahoma and if a team thinks a playoff victory over them is within reach, now is the time to reach for it with. They will only get better from here, so shoot for the stars and you may just reach the clouds this season. If the Mavericks happen to get a couple of first round picks as a result, hey that’ll be just fine with me.
**Kirk**: I have said this before and will again, but I am grateful for this community I found and got the chance to steward, both here at Mavs Moneyball and on Pod Maverick. When Dallas won the title in 2011, I was in Washington DC with my wife and dog. There was no one to celebrate with, no one to tell how much that title meant and why. After that season I got more involved on social media and found this place. Nearly 15 years later here we are. It’s not always easy to do this, but this place matters to me.
Basketball-wise, I am looking forward to seeing what Cooper Flagg can becomethis season. He develops at a startling rate and I think some fans have been spoiled by how good Luka Doncic was and is and are missing out on Flagg’s rate of development in a much different way. Luka was always so gifted on offense. Flagg is still discovering what he can become. It’s going to be really special and I encourage people to pay close attention. It’ll be worth it.