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Cuban: Mavs still trying to win despite recent roster moves

Jerome Miron / USA TODAY Sports

With his team sitting 11th in the Western Conference at a 23-35 mark, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban realizes Dallas likely won't be making much noise in the postseason.

And while Cuban says the Mavericks are still trying to win games, he did admit that some of the team's recent roster moves were made with an eye to the future.

"We obviously haven't played well enough to be in the playoffs right now, but we're playing a lot better," Cuban said on ESPN Radio's "NBA Insiders." "One loss here and there, we're all the sudden in the top five for draft contention, but we're also playing to get better and trying to win, which I think is a good thing."

Dallas was one of the most active teams during a relatively quiet deadline, waiving veteran point guard Deron Williams, and sending Andrew Bogut and Justin Anderson to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Despite getting rid of the key veterans, Cuban insisted the Mavericks are still looking to compete.

"That supposedly is the definition of tanking: You play your youngest players to give them experience without the expectation you're going to win," he said. "In our case, we're playing our youngest players, but we're playing them with the expectation that they're going to win. I think that's the best type of experience. And if that means we get the eighth pick or the 10th pick instead of the fourth pick, I'll live with the consequences."

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