DALLAS, TEXAS — The 6-7 Mavericks are almost through the thick of the first quarter of their opening schedule. Dallas has played 8 road games out of their 13 games played and still have to face the Pacers in Indiana and the Spurs in San Antonio which is no small task. According to the Mavericks game notes for tomorrow night the Mavericks will be without Dorian Finney-Smith, Josh Richardson, Dwight Powell, and Maxi Kleber for the 6th time this season.
This season has been a roller coaster, and the identity of the Mavericks is still unidentifiable. Like my Dad always said there is proof in the pudding, and the Mavericks have a messy prep station. Dallas hasn’t been a mess this season, but not all of the ingredients Rick Carlisle brought to make the pudding has made its way into the bowl just yet.
Entering this season Carlisle stated several times that the team would place a heavy emphasis on defense, which in all fairness the Mavericks are much better defensively than they were a season ago. According to Basketball Reference the Mavericks have the 5th best rated defense in the NBA, compared to last year when they finished 18th, but what is really putting Dallas at a disadvantage game in and game out is their offensive performance which is surprising.
A season ago the Mavericks put together one of top rated offenses in league history rated 1st in offensive rating. This year Dallas is sitting close to the bottom as the 22nd rated team offensively which last happened in Luka Doncic’s rookie season. Most of this is directly attributed to Dallas being without arguably one of their best shooters on offense Josh Richardson who was hitting his stride before having to be quarantined in Denver due to NBA Covid-19 protocols, and Maxi Kleber who played well in his last game against the Magic.
There have been some bad breaks early in the season and Dallas hasn’t been healthy for the entirety of it, which you could say that is just another part of professional basketball, but it’s just not that clear cut.
Kristaps Porzingis returned to the starting lineup a week ago, Trey Burke has missed some time, and they were without Tim Hardaway Jr who was on a roll before being sidelined against the Bulls due to a groin injury. Yes, this season was one that everyone knew would be different but the Mavericks have dealt with the side effects of playing during a pandemic.
What is interesting about the Mavericks team is what has yet to be seen. They’ve had complete performances, decent performances, and below standard performances, but we aren’t even close to pinpointing the identity of this team.
I believe once this Mavericks team is back at full force they will be one of the better teams in the NBA, but right now it’s a medley of different ingredients that are being poured into the mixing bowl and they are making due with what they have.
