Who is the Dallas Mavericks' Dream Lottery Draft Target?

The Dallas Mavericks officially have the 9th overall pick for the 2026 NBA Draft. There are still more than 5 weeks before the Draft, but they've already met with a handful of prospects, and they likely have an idea of the direction they'll go on June 23rd.

A lot will depend on what happens in front of them. All it takes is one team to fall in love with Aday Mara, Cameron Carr, or Yaxel Lendeborg to have one of the top guard prospects fall to the Mavs at 9. If the Mavericks had their choice, who would they like to fall to them?

For the sense of realism, this won't include any of the prospects who are nearly guaranteed to go in the top four: AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Caleb Wilson, or Cameron Boozer. Of course, the Mavs would love to have Peterson be available, but that would be nearly impossible. This is more of a discussion about the top guards available in the draft: Keaton Wagler, Darius Acuff Jr., Mikel Brown Jr., and Kingston Flemings.

Labaron Philon and Brayden Burries will likely be the two mocked to the Mavs the most. Aday Mara seems to be the non-guard who has the best chance of jumping into the top 10, but the only teams that you could argue need centers are the LA Clippers (5th overall) and Atlanta Hawks (8th overall). The Brooklyn Nets and Sacramento Kings need talent upgrades in general, but the Kings have Domantas Sabonis and Maxime Reynaud, while the Nets have Nic Claxton.

The Clippers traded Ivica Zubac to the Pacers at the deadline, which ended up with the Clippers getting the 5th pick, but they now have a big hole down low. The Hawks have Onyeka Okongwu, but they were sniffing around trades for bigs at the deadline. However, they have a much bigger need at guard after trading away Trae Young, and CJ McCollum is set to be a free agent.

Feb 17, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Mikel Brown Jr. (0) looks on during the second half against the SMU Mustangs at Moody Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Mikel Brown Jr. Feels Like the Perfect Maverick

As long as the medicals check out, Mikel Brown Jr. seems to be the best fit. He has the size, shot-making, and playmaking the Mavs need in their backcourt. Ideally, the Mavs find someone who can play alongside Kyrie Irving for now before eventually taking over as the point guard of the future.

Darius Acuff Jr. is so poor on defense that it seems like Jason Kidd would be out on him immediately. Keaton Wagler tested well athletically, but the tape tells a much different story. Kingston Flemings isn't big enough, but he's a good enough defender and shot-maker.

If the medicals don't check out, and Mikel Brown's back causes the Mavs to pause, their hopes would be between Wagler and Flemings falling. Each has things you love and things to question, but Flemings' ability on or off the ball, while being a pesky defender, makes it seem like he'd be high on their board.

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