From the 2000/01 season to the 2015/16 season, the Dallas Mavericks missed the playoffs just once.
Since that 2015/16 season, though, the Mavs have missed the playoffs in back-to-back years and are in the midst of a bit of a rebuild. Tuesday night, Dallas had a chance to accelerate that rebuild thanks to the draft lottery, but things didn't go as planned.
The Mavs entered the draft lottery with the third-best odds of ending up with the top pick, but the balls didn't fall their way and they ended up with the fifth pick when it was all said and done.
It was a disappointing result to say the least and Dirk Nowitzki summed up how all Dallas fans felt after watching the draft lottery.
It's not like the Mavericks won't be getting what they hope will be a quality player, but sitting at five, the player they want could be gone by the time they're on the clock.
Maybe lady luck will be on their side like last year, though, when Dennis Smith Jr. fell to them at nine and made an immediate impact.
Whoever the team ends up selecting, we hope that player helps them win and get back to the postseason to give Dirk another playoff run because next season could be his last.
(H/T: Dirk Nowitzki)
