But that doesn't mean hope is lost.

The NBA draft Thursday night was not a time for the Mavericks to make a big splash. It was a time to take care of business as best they could. But the festivities were not the big dealings that fans are waiting for.

And there better be some big dealings.

The Mavericks are under the microscope because of what has happened around them. So many teams have gained strength that it's guilt by disassociation.

While San Antonio, Denver and others fortify themselves, the Mavericks are waiting.

Will the right deal come along?

All fans can do is trust in the management. And word out of the Mavericks' draft room as they look forward to free agency is that there's going to be a few more perhaps more prudent options when it comes to making a big splash than the Spurs, Cleveland and Orlando have done in the last week.

"Wait," said president of Basketball operations Donnie Nelson. "One shouldn't confuse silence with inactivity. We're prepared for a very active summer."

That's tough to do when you see the rest of the league upgrading in the arms race at a rapid pace.

The Mavericks have essentially the same trade chip in Jerry Stackhouse that the Spurs and Cavaliers had to work with. Yet today, the Mavericks remain unchanged since the end of the season, save for the draft night acquisition of Rodrigue Beaubois, a point guard from France who has great athleticism but is probably a couple of years away from being able to contribute on a championship-level team.

"Now the craziness really happens," Nelson said.

The Mavericks also are operating under the assumption that there is not a finite pool of "splash" players out there.

Just because Vince Carter, Richard Jefferson and Shaquille O'Neal have moved to contending teams doesn't mean the Mavericks won't be able to find just as much of a helper.

It will almost certainly have to be a trade of some sort, with Stackhouse's $7 million contract, which can be bought out for $2 million, and Erick Dampier's expiring $11 million deal as the primary trade chips.

As far as straight free agency goes, this summer will not be the frenzy it's going to be in 2010. But can the Mavericks afford to wait a full year to make their big play for help for Dirk Nowitzki?

Not likely.

As for free-agent targets, the options are limited. It seems unlikely Lamar Odom or Trevor Ariza are going to leave the Los Angeles Lakers.

Carlos Boozer is looking to hit the lottery, and Utah seems intent on doing a sign-and-trade.

Others, like Ben Gordon, Allen Iverson and the like, make only marginal sense for the Mavericks .

The bottom line is that they are going to have to remain patient. Other teams are going to get antsy and try to shed money. When they do, the Mavericks have to pounce.

If they don't, it'll be a long summer and a longer 2009-10 season.