Dallas Mavs Promising Center Becomes Guaranteed; 'The Job Isn't Done!'

The maturation of Dallas Mavs big man Moussa Cissé is ongoing ... a process that now includes the fact that his $2,185,116 salary for the 2026-27 season is now fully guaranteed.

The Mavs will retain the second-year center on the roster via the passing of Thursday’s Oct. 1 deadline.

Dallas is heading to Macao this weekend with the maximum 15 standard contracts. ... and now Moussa is in that group.

The Mavericks play the Houston Rockets at The Venetian Arena on Oct. 9 and Oct. 11 as part of the NBA China Games. ... and Cisse will get the chance to showcase himself.

There was a moment there when this might not have happened in Dallas. The New York Knicks signed Cissé, then a restricted free agent, to a two-year, $4.7 million offer sheet back on July 18.

Dallas had 48 hours to match but pulled the trigger on the decision to do so very quickly.

As a sidebar: Because the Mavericks matched, Cissé cannot be traded without his approval for a year after the match, and he cannot be traded to the Knicks during that window.

But there are no "goodbye'' plans here, anyway. The Mavs believe they have an emerging talent here in the 24-year-old.

Cissé went undrafted out of Memphis in 2025 and signed an Exhibit 10 contract with Dallas on July 8 of that year. He had 6 points, 12 rebounds, and a team-high seven blocks in three preseason games. The Mavericks announced his conversion to a two-way contract on Oct. 20, 2025.

As a rookie, the 6-11 Cissé averaged 4.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 13.9 minutes over 38 games, one of them a start. He shot 57.4% from the field. His career highs of 17 points and 20 rebounds came in the regular-season finale on April 12 against the Chicago Bulls.

He split the season between Dallas and the Texas Legends, the Mavericks’ G League affiliate.

That seems behind him now as he competes with fellow Mavs big men Daniel Gafford (the subject of some trade speculation) and Dereck Lively (still working through an injury) - and maybe with Santi Aldama and Morez Johnson, too - for minutes.

Maybe also in play is Dwight Powell, 35, the longest-tenured player on the roster, who is a camp invitee.

There are no sure bets here, but the contract status gives Cisse some security - and maybe a boost in confidence as well.

“That’s what every basketball player wants, to be on a standard contract,” Cissé said. “That don’t mean the job is done. I gotta keep working.”