The Dallas Mavericks have put their 2026 preseason on the board, and it starts with a pair of games halfway around the world.
Dallas announced its preseason schedule Wednesday morning, with the first two exhibitions coming against the Houston Rockets on October 9 and October 11. Both games will be played at The Venetian Arena in Macau, China, a venue owned by the Las Vegas Sands Corp., which is owned by the Mavericks’ owners.
The timing will make those matchups a tough watch for fans back home. The October 9 game is set for 7 a.m.
CST, while the rematch on October 11 will tip at 5 a.m. CST.
After the trip to China, the Mavericks will return home for two games at the American Airlines Center. They’ll face the New Orleans Pelicans on October 14 at 7 p.m.
CST, then close out the preseason against the Atlanta Hawks on October 16 at 7 p.m. CST.
That schedule points to a regular season start somewhere between October 20 and October 22, depending on which opening-night matchup the NBA gives Dallas.
There’s plenty to watch before then, starting with how this new-look team will actually play. The Mavericks are entering a new era with Masai Ujiri now running the front office as team president, Mike Schmitz as general manager, and Dusty May taking over as head coach after winning a national championship at Michigan last year. May has never coached in the NBA, so the structure and style he chooses will be one of the biggest storylines of the fall.
Health will be another major thread. Dereck Lively II remains a question mark after foot surgery in December. He’s out of the walking boot and walking around, but the team has not said how close he is to being back in playing shape.
Kyrie Irving is also on the radar. He has been out since March of 2025 with a torn ACL, and even if he doesn’t appear in preseason action, any update on his recovery will matter.
Then there’s Morez Johnson and how he fits next to Cooper Flagg. Dallas used the No. 9 pick on Johnson despite obvious needs in the backcourt, betting that his defensive versatility in the frontcourt can help the team in the direction the game is headed.
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The Mavericks have spent the summer reshaping the roster around Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving, and the front office has clearly not been shy about adding more pieces. Dallas drafted Morez Johnson Jr. and Sergio De Larrea, acquired Santi Aldama and Tarik Biberovi, and also brought in Zaccharie Risacher, leaving the team with a deeper, more varied group than it had before the overhaul began.
Now comes the part that is always less glamorous than the shopping spree. Dallas is carrying 16 players and has to get down to 15 by opening night, which means someone has to go, and the real squeeze is showing up in the frontcourt and at center. P.J. Washington, Santi Aldama and Morez Johnson Jr. all bring power-forward traits, while the middle of the floor remains unsettled enough that the Mavericks are still sorting through how the rotation should actually look once the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]