With Jalen Brunson leading the New York Knicks to their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999, the trade that sent the former Dallas Maverick away has resurfaced as one of the more painful missed opportunities in the franchise’s recent history.
NBA insider Marc Stein, recently appearing on the ALL NBA Podcast, revealed that Brunson’s representatives literally laughed when the Mavericks approached them midway through the 2021-22 season and floated the idea of a four-year, $55.5 million contract extension.
Rick Brunson, Jalen’s father and a Knicks assistant coach, has also since confirmed that the Mavs’ offer was quickly dismissed.
Speaking to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon in 2025, Rick made clear the conversation barely even registered on their radar. “That was a 30-second conversation,” he said. “I wasn’t on the phone, but how I got the message was, ‘You guys wouldn’t be interested in that deal now, would you?’ That’s how it was said to me. I just laughed.”
The Brunson Timeline
Before the 2021-22 season even began, Brunson’s camp showed signs of being open to an extension. Dallas hesitated, uncertain about his upside following a shaky playoff showing against the LA Clippers the year prior. The Mavericks never made a formal offer. By the time they circled back – midseason, with Brunson averaging the best numbers of his career – the window had closed.
Stein noted the Mavericks could have potentially salvaged the relationship, but it would have required a dramatically different approach: a genuine, market-beating offer that showed Brunson he was a priority. Instead, the team essentially asked whether he’d accept a number his own camp found laughable.
Brunson went on to average 21.6 points per game during Dallas’s 2022 playoff run, carrying the team through stretches when Luka Dončić was sidelined with a calf injury. He carried the Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in over a decade. That performance boosted his market value incredibly within the league.
That summer, Brunson agreed to a four-year, $104 million deal with the Knicks, as previously reported by DX. The Mavericks had reportedly been willing to offer a five-year deal at a similar annual value to other guards around the league, but never got the chance to formally present it – Brunson’s representatives informed Dallas the meeting was off because he had already decided on New York.
Four years later, the decision continues to draw attention. Brunson has become a multi-time NBA All-Star and All-NBA selection with the Knicks. The Mavericks traded Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis in February 2025. Dallas later traded Davis to the Washington Wizards in February 2026.
The Mavericks drafted both Brunson (second round, 2018) and Dončić (first round, 2018). As of 2026, both stars are playing in New York and Los Angeles, the league’s two largest markets.
For Mavericks fans watching Brunson run the floor at Madison Square Garden with a shot at a championship ring, it’s hard not to wonder what could’ve been.
