Are Dallas Mavericks Winners or Losers of 2026 NBA Draft?

The 2026 NBA Draft is now over, and the Dallas Mavericks have four new prospects to show for it. They had the first big surprise of the draft by taking Michigan's Morez Johnson Jr. 9th overall, traded up from 30 to 25 to secure Spanish guard Sergio De Larrea, stuck with the 48th pick for Virginia Tech's Tobi Lawal, then bought the 56th pick from the Los Angeles Lakers (who had previously bought it from the Bulls) to secure Russian sharpshooter Vsevolod Ishchenko.

It was an interesting draft, to say the least. It was the first draft with the Mavs under team president Masai Ujiri and general manager Mike Schmitz, and it was a very Masai Ujiri-themed draft: no readymade guards, and no proven shooting. Ishchenko and De Larrea have been good shooters overseas, but Ishchenko is coming from a lower Russian division, and De Larrea is still developing.

In fact, De Larrea and Ishchenko may just stay overseas for another year while they continue to develop. In a draft loaded with talent ready to play right away, the Mavericks didn't come away with that. As talented as Morez Johnson is, especially defensively, he's joining a loaded frontcourt, and they haven't made any other moves to clear up that space.

Here are some reactions from around the NBA on how the Mavericks fared in the draft.

Jun 23, 2026; New York, NY, USA; NBA commissioner Adam Silver greets the ninth pick in the 2026 NBA draft, Michigan forward Morez Johnson Jr. after he was selected by the Dallas Mavericks at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

John Hollinger, The Athletic, "Strangest Reach"

"As part of its ongoing project to give Cooper Flagg as little floor space as possible, Dallas passed on a talented guard (Brayden Burries, whom Milwaukee giddily snagged with the next pick) to cram Johnson into a crowded frontcourt littered with fours and fives, while Kyrie Irving and Max Christie are basically the only rotation-caliber guards on the roster," Hollinger wrote.

Hollinger mentioned that he had Johnson ranked a few spots below where he actually went, but it wasn't a flabbergasting reach. It was just strange for the Mavs to take him with their current frontcourt.

If they make some trades, that will help matters, but not many veterans were traded throughout the draft process.

Jack Maloney and Brad Botkin, CBS Sports, Call Mavericks Losers

"Johnson could certainly wind up being a good player, and his familiarity with May will help his transition to the pros, but he doesn't have the upside you'd hope to get from a top-10 pick, and the Mavericks still need a lot of help around 2026 Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg," they wrote.

Johnson's offensive fit is what makes picking him so questionable. If the Mavericks plan to play Cooper Flagg, Morez Johnson, and Dereck Lively II all together, the paint is going to be very crowded unless Johnson and Flagg each show big improvements in their jumpers.

In most draft grades, Johnson had the lowest grade of any lottery pick. That's not to say he can't work out, but a lot of people find the fit questionable. Two of the players they took may be stashed overseas for a year. It was an interesting draft strategy, but the Mavericks want to build for the future, not just right now.

Add us as a preferred source on Google