At last year’s trade deadline, the Dallas Mavericks realized they needed to change their roster to better compete alongside stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. They first targeted Kyle Kuzma, who was with the Washington Wizards, hoping to improve their forward position.
At that time, the Mavericks were struggling, with a record of 26-23 and just on the edge of playoff contention. However, Kuzma turned down the chance to join the Mavericks when the Wizards had just nine wins. This led them to acquire Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington, which turned out to be crucial for their playoff success.
The Mavericks thought Kyle Kuzma would boost their game, and Wizards executive Michael Winger offered him a trade during a tough season for Washington. When Kuzma turned down the offer, the Mavericks looked for other options and signed Gafford and Washington. These moves significantly strengthened the Mavericks’ defense and rebounding, making them one of the best defensive teams in the league by the end of the season.
In a recent interview, Josh Robbins of The Athletic asked Kuzma if he regrets turning down the Mavericks, to which he replied, “Absolutely not. A big part of the Mavericks becoming who they were was getting an extra center and a forward. If I would’ve went there, that wouldn’t have happened, getting two impact players.” He highlighted the importance of team depth, noting, “When you look at who won the championship, it wasn’t a team with (just) three or four players; it was a team with six or seven really good players.”
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Kyle Kuzma Shares Thoughts On Dallas Mavericks’ Playoff Run
The additions of Gafford and Washington allowed the Mavericks to rank fifth in defensive rating and third in rebounds per game during the playoffs, which greatly contributed to their surprising run to the NBA Finals. While Kuzma has valuable skills, they may not have addressed the Mavericks’ critical defensive needs as effectively as Gafford and Washington did.
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Despite the Mavericks’ success, Kuzma believes he made the right choice. He noted the team’s growth throughout the season, saying, “They were an interesting group all year… you could see by adding another center to play extended minutes, Daniel Gafford, and to add another forward really helped them get over some type of hump.” At that time, few considered the Mavericks serious contenders as they struggled to find their identity.
Kyle Kuzma is on a struggling Wizards team that finished last season with a poor 15-67 record. With the team projected to win only 22.5 games this season, his individual success—averaging 22.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 0.5 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game—seems overshadowed by the team’s overall performance. The Wizards made some off-season additions, but unless young talents become superstars, the team is likely to remain near the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
