A year after making the Western Conference Finals, the Mavericks had a disappointing follow-up season. Their 38-44 record put them in 11th place and out of the Play-In Tournament.
The pressure will be on the Mavericks to fix this team on the fly. Their biggest decision is in what to do with Kyrie Irving, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent. They also have seven other free agents on their roster and limited means of acquiring new players.
The Mavs could open up around $24 million in cap space if they move on from Irving and the rest of their free agents. More likely, they will operate as an over-the-cap team and try to add a new player or two via the $12 million mid-level exception while bringing back many of their own free agents.
Who are the Mavs' free agents in 2023, and which are the most important to retain? Here's what to know about Dallas' biggest upcoming roster decisions.
MORE: NBA free agents 2023 Big Board: Ranking top 50 players
Full list of Mavericks free agents 2023
Below is a full look at the Mavericks' free agents. Also included are their positions and ages.
| Player | Position | Free agency type | Age |
| Kyrie Irving | PG | Unrestricted | 31 |
| Markieff Morris | PF | Unrestricted | 33 |
| Dwight Powell | C | Unrestricted | 31 |
| Frank Ntilikina | SG | Unrestricted | 24 |
| Christian Wood | C | Unrestricted | 27 |
| Theo Pinson | SG | Unrestricted | 27 |
| Justin Holiday | SF | Unrestricted | 34 |
| McKinley Wright IV | PG | Restricted | 24 |
Unrestricted free agents are free to sign with any team. Restricted free agents can sign an offer sheet with any team, but their original team can retain them by matching the offer sheet.
Ranking the Mavericks' top free agents of 2023
Who should the Mavericks be most focused on re-signing? These players probably rank as the most important for the Mavericks to try and improve next season.
1. Kyrie Irving, PG
Mark Cuban told ESPN's Tim MacMahon shortly after the end of the regular season that re-signing Irving is the Mavs' top priority. The market for him might be tepid — aside from perhaps the Jazz, the other teams with cap space aren't natural fits for him.
The Mavs can extend Irving for two years and up to $83 million, or sign him up to five years at over $270 million.
A sign-and-trade is also a possibility in order to get him to a contender. Last summer, Irving released a list of preferred teams in a sign-and-trade scenario, which included the Clippers, Heat, Knicks, Lakers, Mavericks and Sixers.
MORE: Seven big questions about Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic and a broken roster
2. Christian Wood, C
Wood is a good player who the Mavs gave up a first-round pick to trade for last offseason. But it sounds like he won't be brought back. He'll command a decent salary, and he never fully earned the trust of Jason Kidd because of his defensive limitations.
That's a shame because he was a favorite of Luka Doncic and had clear chemistry on the offensive end with him. Wood shot it well from 3, hitting 37.6 percent of his attempts. He also led the team with 86 dunks.
3. Dwight Powell, C
Powell has been on the Mavs for the past eight seasons. He's been a dependable bench big man who knows his role. He's going to try hard on defense, put a lot of pressure on the rim on pick-and-rolls and get some high-percentage looks at the basket.
Ultimately, he's not an incredibly dynamic player that can play a ton of minutes. But he's been a mainstay for so long and can probably be brought back on a cheap deal.
4. McKinley Wright IV, PG
Wright is a restricted free agent. He was a third-string point guard who played well in limited minutes. There likely won't be a ton of interest in him, and he can come back on a cheap deal.
5. Justin Holiday, SF
At one point in his career, Holiday was a reliable 3-and-D veteran. But at age 34, he can't guard like he used to and his shooting took a nosedive last season.
6. Markieff Morris, PF
Morris didn't play much for the Mavs after being acquired as part of the Kyrie Irving trade. He likely won't be back with the team.
7. Theo Pinson, SG
Pinson is a good teammate who provides energy off the bench. He doesn't provide much on the floor but he is known for keeping the locker room together.
8. Frank Ntilikina, SG
Ntilikina showed promise as a draft prospect, being taken eighth overall in the 2017 NBA Draft. But he has yet to shoot above 40 percent from the field for a season, and his 25.4 percent from 3 for the Mavs last year was ghastly. He's a good defender but doesn't really do enough else to stick with an NBA team.
