Mark Cuban is no longer making day-to-day decisions for the Dallas Mavericks, but his voice still carries weight.

On the DLLS Mavs show, the team’s former majority owner made a bold prediction. He believes the Mavericks’ season will rise or fall based on the three-point shooting of Anthony Davis and Dereck Lively II.

“I literally think our season will go as well as D-Live and AD shooting 3s,” Cuban said. “I think [Lively’s] going to get the green light.”

The expectation is striking, particularly for two players not known for perimeter production. Davis has not shot over 30% from deep in a season since the Lakers’ championship run in 2019–20. Lively, meanwhile, owns just one career make. It occurred on a corner three-pointer in Game 4 of the 2024 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics.

That shot was the product of necessity. Lively went viral in the pre-draft process for a Klutch Sports Pro Day workout showcasing unexpected range, but the Mavericks largely avoided asking him to take perimeter shots during his rookie season. It wasn’t until the Finals, when Boston neutralized Dallas’ pick-and-roll attack, that he was pushed into the corner as a spacer. He connected once, then never attempted another three the rest of the year.

Cuban believes unlocking that element of Lively’s game — along with Davis rediscovering his rhythm from long range — could reshape Dallas’ offensive balance. The logic is simple: if the Mavericks can gain all the benefits of playing two bigs together to protect the paint and finish inside, while also achieving quality 4-out, 1-in spacing, they would mitigate the downside of having dual non-shooters on the floor. In theory, this could open the door to actions like double drag, where both bigs come up to screen and defenders can’t sag off without being punished. It would also allow Dallas to run sets where Davis is directly involved in the action while Lively isn’t stuck in the dunker spot clogging the lane. Even when Davis isolates from the elbow or posts up, the offense becomes far more dynamic if Lively is spaced out and commands respect as a shooter.

For now, that remains speculative. Lively has yet to prove he can be a legitimate threat from the perimeter against NBA defenses, and he has very limited experience playing in space. Until those results materialize, opponents will likely continue daring him to shoot.

The Mavericks have tried to prepare for this evolution, bringing in former Lakers assistant Mike Penberthy, who worked closely with Davis during the peak of his outside shooting success. The hope is that with the right coaching and repetition, both Davis and Lively can stretch defenses enough to unlock the full potential of the Mavericks’ offense.

That spacing would also set the stage for rookie No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg, whom Cuban has touted as the future of the franchise. Having Davis and Lively pull defenders out of the paint could give the 18-year-old forward and Kyrie Irving more room to attack in the half-court.

“The basketball Gods were looking down on us, and Coop’s the real deal,” Cuban said. “He’s not even 19 years old. He could literally, depending on science, play for the Mavs for 25 years.”

Training camp opens Sept. 30 in Vancouver. Dallas will debut its new-look lineup at home against San Antonio on Oct. 22.