record, their worst in 20 years. In the 2018 NBA draft, the Mavericks were awarded the fifth pick. With their eyes on Slovenian guard Luka Dončić, a projected top-three pick, the Mavericks worked out a deal with the Atlanta Hawks, who owned the third pick. The Hawks agreed to draft Dončić for Dallas, while the Mavericks drafted point guard Trae Young for Atlanta. The two teams traded the draft rights to their selections, with the Mavericks packaging in a top five protected 2019 first-round pick. Dirk Nowitzki's retirement On April 9, 2019, Dirk Nowitzki announced his retirement from the NBA. He spent a record-breaking 21 seasons with a single team, surpassing only Kobe Bryant, and the fifth player to spend 21 seasons in the NBA. 2019–20 season: Returning to the playoffs The Mavericks finished with the 43–32 record, qualifying again for the playoffs in the seventh seed. On August 23, 2020, Dončić scored a historic and series-tying buzzer beater against the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 4 in overtime 135–133. Dončić had 43 points, 17 rebounds, 13 assists, and a game-winning buzzer beater. This buzzer beater broke a number of records. He became the youngest player to hit a game-winning buzzer beater in the playoffs, and the third to make 40+ points, 15+ rebounds, and 10+ assists in a playoff game whilst hitting a buzzer beater, and the fifth (after Michael Jordan, Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James, and Damian Lillard) to score at least 40 points and a buzzer beater in a playoff game. He is also the youngest person to hit a game-winning buzzer beater in a playoff game. However, the Mavericks lost to Leonard and the Clippers in 6 games. 2020–21 season: Postseason rematch with the Clippers For the second consecutive year, the now 5-seed Dallas Mavericks faced the now 4-seed Clippers. However, they lost the Western Conference first round series in seven games after winning the first two games and three games in Los Angeles. References External links Dallas Mavericks official website DallasBasketball.com website Dallas Mavericks History NBA Hoops Online Dallas Mavericks Dallas