Are Dallas Mavericks Signaling Trade Up in 2026 NBA Draft By Meeting With AJ Dybantsa?

The Dallas Mavericks have been moving with intentions at the NBA Combine this week.

Mar 7, 2026; Provo, Utah, USA; BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) looks on during the first half against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Marriott Center. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Baker-Imagn Images | Aaron Baker-Imagn Images

Dallas Mavericks fans were disappointed when the team fell in the draft lottery to the 9th pick, ending the hope of adding an elite talent to pair with Cooper Flagg. There is still a lot of talent down the board, as the 2026 class is seen as one of the best and deepest in recent years, but it's a lot easier to buy into the hype if a team were to end up with someone like AJ Dybantsa or Darryn Peterson.

The Mavericks could always trade up. It'd be breaking a trend of Masai Ujiri, as he's never really been one to trade up or down during the draft. He will move players for additional picks, but rarely does he move around the board.

That could change, as Marc J. Spears of Andscape and ESPN has reported that the Mavs, along with the Washington Wizards, Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls, Atlanta Hawks, Utah Jazz, Sacramento Kings, Memphis Grizzlies, and LA Clippers, have met with Dybantsa this week at the combine. That is every team inside the top 9 of the draft.

Rumors have also been swirling around that the Wizards are open to trading the pick. They're not viewing the first pick as the missing piece for the team, at least, as of now. They made intriguing midseason trades for Trae Young and Anthony Davis, and want to make sure that they get the most possible out of this pick, whether that means trading down and acquiring more assets or taking the best fit on the board.

Feb 14, 2026; Provo, Utah, USA; BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) looks on during the second half against the Colorado Buffaloes at the Marriott Center. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Baker-Imagn Images | Aaron Baker-Imagn Images

Don't Expect the Mavericks to End Up With AJ Dybantsa

The Mavericks are likely just doing their due diligence on all of the top prospects by meeting with AJ Dybantsa, who is expected to be the first overall pick. Even if, for whatever reason, the Wizards select someone else, there's almost no way he slips past the Utah Jazz at the second pick.

That would almost force the Mavericks to trade up, and they simply don't have the assets to do so. Cooper Flagg is untouchable, as he should be, so even if they created a package around Kyrie Irving, they have very little future trade capital, and that wouldn't move the needle to jump from 9th to 1st.

Dallas has to focus on doing what's best for Flagg. Some would argue Dybantsa and Flagg wouldn't be a great fit on the court anyway. If anything, they should be looking to sell off veterans for future picks, not using them to jump up in the lottery. Packaging a veteran with the 30th pick to trade into the top 20 would be a different story, and something they should look into doing, though.