The Mavericks Dilemma: Thick eyebrows and injuries may become the norm, and the management has a difficult choice between failing and winning.

Translator's Note: The original article was published in TheAthletic. The data in the article are as of the time of publication of the original article (November 21, local time). The dates and times involved are all local time. The opinions expressed in this article have nothing to do with the translator or the platform.

The Mavericks have played more home games than any other team in the NBA, but as the quarter of the regular season approaches, they are ranked 13th in the Western Conference.

After losing to the Knicks on Wednesday, the Mavericks' record fell to 4 wins and 12 losses. They haven't had such a bad start since 2017-18, when they lost 14 of their first 16 games. The dismal performance that season earned the Mavericks the No. 5 pick in the 2018 draft, which they used in exchange for Luka Doncic.

While playing for the Mavericks, Doncic led the team to far depths in the playoffs twice, including reaching the NBA Finals in 2024, but it all came to an abrupt end in February. Ten months after trading away Doncic, the Mavericks are back at the bottom of the Western Conference.

In the next few weeks, the Mavericks need to establish a direction. They can either prioritize getting as high as possible in the 2026 draft — of course, the Mavericks won’t have full control of their first-round pick until 2031 — or continue to be as competitive as possible.

Here's the current situation the Mavericks are facing after firing general manager Nico Harrison last week.

Anthony Davis' status

Davis has missed the past 11 games due to a left calf strain he suffered against the Pacers on October 29. He will also miss Friday and Saturday's game and is expected to have the injury re-evaluated next week.

Since the Mavericks traded for him in February, Davis has suffered three different injuries: an adductor strain, a detached retina in his right eye and a calf strain. He missed more than twice as many games as he played (16 if you include last spring's play-in games) and played just 415 regular-season minutes with the Mavericks -- 90 fewer than the Mavericks' top pick, Cooper Flagg, who played the most minutes this season.

With Harrison being fired last week, rumors spread that the Mavericks might move Davis before the February 5 trade deadline. Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban told The Athletic on Wednesday that the Mavericks will not trade Davis this season because the team is still committed to winning. According to other team sources interviewed by The Athletic, the Mavericks will be waiting for opportunities to pursue any plan to strengthen the lineup around Flagg. They also emphasized that the team is still in the evaluation stage before deciding on its future direction.

Before Davis can play again, the Mavericks' medical staff must be convinced that Davis is not at risk of re-straining his calf or suffering a more serious injury (such as a torn Achilles tendon). Multiple NBA staff members from rival teams told The Athletic that they believe the Mavericks decided to sideline Davis when he was eager to return to ensure that his trade value did not drop further.

"I think (they) were being careful with his calf injury so that he wouldn't get hurt again and lose all value," one Western Conference executive said.

Davis will turn 33 in March. His salary next season is $58.5 million and he has a player option worth $62.8 million for the 2027-28 season. He's a game-changing talent when he's on the court, but he's been sparse of late.

What is the situation with management?

Last week, the Mavericks appointed Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley as co-interim general managers. Head coach Jason Kidd still has a lot of say in front of team owner Patrick Dumont. Now, Cuban, who owns 27% of the team, is back. He revealed to The Athletic that he is an "advisor" to owner Patrick Dumont, who will "make all final decisions."

While it's been more than a week since the Mavericks officially parted ways with Harrison, one thing is clear when it comes to finding a successor: They won't be rushing anything. As a source familiar with management's thinking told The Athletic regarding the Mavericks' general manager search: "It's the qualifications that determine the candidate, not the timeline."

It's even possible that the Mavericks' current power structure will remain in place until the February 5 trade deadline.

The Athletic reported last week that Texas native Dennis Lindsay, who served as a top executive with the Jazz and has a successful nine-year resume, is a candidate supported by Cuban. Lindsay served as a consultant to the Mavericks in the 2023-24 season, and he is currently the Pistons' second-in-command.

Lindsay enjoys a high reputation throughout the league. As one former league executive who worked with him put it, Lindsay "has great persona, knows the game, has experience and has been in this position before."

NBA reporter Marc Stein said that the Mavericks management is looking for someone "who is willing to communicate and can calmly explain the team's plans and prospects to the public." This consideration makes sense given the many public relations missteps the Mavericks — and Harrison in particular — made following the Doncic trade.

Team sources The Athletic spoke to hope that whoever the successor is will bring calm and stability to a team that has been in turmoil over the past 10 months, much of it self-inflicted.