Why is NBA investigating Mavericks? All you need to know

The NBA is investigating the Dallas Mavericks following their 115-112 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Friday.

The Mavericks sat four key rotation players: Kyrie Irving (right foot injury recovery), Josh Green (rest), Tim Hardaway Jr. (left ankle soreness), Maxi Kleber (right hamstring injury recovery) and Christian Wood (rest) for the game.

Meanwhile, Luka Doncic played only the first quarter and was sidelined for the rest of the game. The Mavericks eventually lost and were eliminated from the playoff race.

The loss could get them a top-10 pick in the upcoming draft. Making the playoffs would've seen the Mavs give up their first-round pick to the New York Knicks.

Dallas gave the Knicks a first-round pick (protected picks 1-10) in the deal to acquire Kristaps Porzingis in 2019. The NBA is investigating the Mavericks for potentially tanking the game to secure a top-10 first-round pick.

Here's what NBA spokesperson Mike Bass said regarding this (via Tim MacMahon):

"The NBA commenced an investigation today into the facts and circumstances surrounding the Dallas Mavericks’ roster decisions and game conduct with respect to last night’s Chicago Bulls-Mavericks game, including the motivations behind those actions.”

The NBA could fine Mavs owner Mark Cuban if the investigation if the team is found guilty of purposely forcing a loss against the Chicago Bulls. Cuban has been fined $600,000 once before for publicly hinting that the Mavs were tanking for a favorable lottery pick during the 2017-18 season.

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Dallas Mavericks' woes continue amid latest NBA investigation

Dallas went from a team that made the conference finals last season to a lottery team in no time. It all started when the Mavs blew up their roster to acquire Kyrie Irving at the trade deadline.

The Mavs were 29-26 when they added the former NBA champion and have gone 8-17 since then, dropping to a 38-43 record and getting eliminated from the playoffs race. Irving's addition was bold and seemed a positive one initially. However, Dallas gave up pieces like Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith that were excellent fits next to superstar Luka Doncic.

Irving and Doncic have been able to produce the goods, but the team's defensive struggles and lack of contributors outside the backcourt duo have worsened the team's roster balance.

Dallas now faces a dilemma about whether or not to re-sign Kyrie Irving in free agency after how their season went down post his addition. He will likely command a max deal, which will hamper the Mavs' salary cap flexibility in free agency and ability to add pieces that fit next to Irving and Luka Doncic.

The latest reports suggest Doncic could demand a trade in December 2024 if the team fails to surround him with an ideal roster to contend for a championship. That puts Dallas in a crunch moving forward, as they won't have much time to turn their roster around and keep hold of a generational talent like Doncic.