Texas has a rich history of the NBA championships
After last season’s Denver Nuggets championship, there was a lot of discussion about how they were the first Western conference team outside of Texas and California to win the title since 1979 (the Seattle SuperSonics). Since that Seattle championship, Texas-NBA franchises have captured eight titles:
- San Antonio Spurs (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2014)
- Houston Rockets (1994, 1995)
- Dallas Mavericks (2011)
While all three Texas-NBA franchises found themselves out of action last season, all of them are poised to have very unproductive seasons. With San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas all in theory, which team is set up to be the best in the long run to truly compete and win the title before the others?
San Antonio Spurs: Adding Gil’s talent to the youth list
The San Antonio Spurs drafted the 7’4″ French phenom, Victor Wimpanyama, whose cap is as high as any player entering the league since LeBron James. The 19-year-old is already the blocker Favorite to win 2024 Rookie of the Year (odds -225) And he has a chance to be the first rookie to become an All-Star since Blake Griffin in 2011. The Spurs office was also wise to draft fellow Frenchman Sidi Sissoko, with the 44th pick this season to make Wimpy feel more comfortable transitioning to the NBA lifestyle.
As for the rest of the roster, San Antonio has several promising hunks like Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Suchan, and Devin Vassell. In addition, this historically impressive front office has a good chunk of headroom to complement the list. Gregg Popovich is also still around and, for the first time since 2018-2019, will be coaching meaningful basketball games. Bob can point out to the league that this rebuilding of Tottenham is happening faster than expected.
Houston Rockets: A new coach, young talent, and financial ability
Houston drafted Amin Thompson and Cam Whitmore, both considered top 10 talents, to add to their incredibly interesting young roster. The Rockets brought in a Finals-caliber coach in Emi Odoka, who helped elevate the Celtics in 2021-22, leading them to their first Finals appearance since 2010. Now working with the likes of Alperin Sengun, Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., and Tari Eason, Among others in addition to the 2023 draft.
Houston is another team with plenty of room to go into free agency and potentially bring in a couple of veterans with bigger contracts. These veterans can help set the tone for Ime Udoka and the young Rockets team and maybe we can finally see a jump-start from Jalen Green.
Dallas Mavericks: Building around a young star
The Mavericks have Luka Doncic. He will be entering his fifth season in the NBA at the age of 24 and was already a four-time All-NBA player and in the MVP mix during his young career. He’s an example of the guy you’d want on your roster if you’re trying to win a championship and the Mavs have already made the Conference Finals with him.
The support team around Luka is currently lacking, but they managed to nab two nice rookies in Dereck Lively II and Olivier-Maxence Prosper in the 2023 NBA Draft. Kyrie Irving is also still at the back end from his debut at 31. The Mavs likely have Only two more seasons before Irving really starts to slump but the 6’2 inch guard is still currently a top 25 player in the NBA. With their current window and Luca’s rookie side, Dallas has a great opportunity to get some deep playoffs if a couple of rookie/small agent signings come out.
correct answer? Dallas Mavericks
San Antonio and Houston are both incredibly interesting and will definitely be in the opener in a few seasons. However, you need experience to win a title in the NBA. Even if Wimpanyama gets the chance to be the next Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in time, Kareem was 22 years old when he was drafted into the NBA and won his first title at the age of 24. This title was also achieved while playing with the great Oscar Robertson who was He is in his early 30s and is one of the 20 best players in NBA history.
The Rockets have a similar problem, but they have less confidence in having a future All-NBA player on their roster. With so many young prospects, it is difficult to optimize player growth for all and it is likely that while one or two of them will thrive, others may struggle. In the past three seasons, they also have the worst record in the NBA at 59-177, so they will first need to work simply on building a winning culture before even considering a championship.
Meanwhile, the Mavericks currently have a top 10 (dare I say 5) player in the NBA entering his prime. Doncic has recently seen two world-class stars win championships in Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic. Giannis won his title at age 26, and Jokic just won his title at age 28. As long as the Mavs can retain some semblance of depth and talent around Luka Doncic, he has the tools and schedule to bring Dallas another championship in the next three-four seasons.
- Posted on 06/27/2023 at 19:00 PM
- Last updated on 06/27/2023 at 02:46 AM