The Mavericks are built for the playoffs
A smaller Mavericks team without Kristaps Porzingis has found its identity: athletic small-ball built around Luka Doncic.
When the Dallas Mavericks moved on from coach Rick Carlisle last summer, the decision came with some reluctance. Player relations issues, not necessarily basketball, was one of the main reasons. The Mavs had just come ever-so-close to knocking the Clippers out of the playoffs. Replacing a proven, familiar coach is a big step.
It took some time, but they have found a new post-Carlisle identity under new coach Jason Kidd. As skeptical as I was that Kidd would be a good hire, it’s hard to debate his effectiveness at this point. He’s made them a great defense, building an infrastructure that never existed under Carlisle. Now, they’re finding an offensive identity, one that should serve them well when the playoffs come around.
They’ve bought into the idea of having more ball-handling around Luka Doncic. They chose to start Jalen Brunson alongside Doncic on December 12 in a win over the Thunder, and Brunson hasn’t come off the bench since. Rather than surround Doncic with reliant role players, they introduced another on-ball threat. When defenses collapse on Doncic, Brunson could attack space. Doncic wouldn’t have to do absolutely everything all the time.
It worked. They are not the league’s best offense, but Doncic has rounded fully back into form after a difficult start to the season. Brunson continues to play well. And Dallas has not collapsed when both of them sit: surprisingly, they are plus-0.63 in 320 minutes with neither of them on the court this season.
The Mavs saw how well Brunson’s insertion into the starting five worked and doubled down. Trading Kristaps Porzingis for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans was a controversial move, and not one that I loved at the time. I still don’t love it. Dinwiddie and Bertans were bad in Washington, and Porzingis is a legitimately good player when healthy. It felt like the Mavs were selling low on a player that was supposed to be a star, and lowering their ceiling.
The idea behind it, though, made sense. By getting out of the Porzingis business, they remove the day-to-day uncertainty of his health. They dive into what has worked: smaller, athletic lineups with ball-handling around Doncic. Dinwiddie is a point guard who can dribble and pass. Bertans is a catch-and-shoot maven. They weren’t effective in their roles in Washington, but perhaps they’d be effective next to Doncic.
The bet, so far, has paid off. Dinwiddie has been excellent in four games, averaging 14 points on outstanding 73 percent efficiency. Dallas is playing more small-ball than ever. Either the switchable center Dwight Powell is in the game, or the Mavs are playing a wing like Maxi Kleber or Dorian Finney-Smith at center.
In 539 minutes without a true center on the court, the Mavs are plus-seven per 100 possessions. With Dinwiddie in the fold, they are pairing him with Doncic and Brunson in deadly three-guard lineups. They are zipping the ball around the court, attacking every closeout. Watch Dinwiddie attack the space vacated by defenders that focus on Doncic:
That’s the value of playing other guards next to Doncic. Dinwiddie collapses the defense even further, decisively pumping and driving. Doncic is always generating swing-swing sequences. The Mavs are collectively taking full advantage now.
There is more spacing when they play without a center. Watch Kleber force Jonas Valanciunas to play in space, then toast him off the dribble:
Dallas is running healthy offense. There are screens and hand-offs for everybody, leveraging shooting and forcing defenses to rotate. Bertans simply sprinting around the court forces defenders to do a lot of quick thinking.
There is space for Doncic to drive. He can attack switches, or take advantage of defenses that don’t aggressively help against him:
Finney-Smith is a crafty roll man. Watch how he sets a solid screen on Andrew Wiggins, rolls hard and early to the rim, and seals Steph Curry to give Doncic a lane. Kleber has great pick-and-pop chemistry with Doncic.
Life is going to be easier for Doncic in the playoffs. Already a fantastic playoff performer, he will have the benefit of legitimate spacing and more ball-handling next to him. They won’t have to worry about providing Porzingis a requisite number of post-ups. They’re already a great, active defensive team.
There are pitfalls, including Dinwiddie’s inevitable regression to the mean. This supporting cast could still prove limited if shots aren’t falling. Good luck to Dwight Powell if they face Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets in the playoffs.
But this version of the Mavs is promising. They can win at least a playoff series or two.
What else is happening in the NBA?
Well, the Sixers are going to be winning more than a playoff series or two if they’re going to play like this. They romped over Minnesota and the Knicks over the weekend. James Harden is playing like James Harden, and seems to have real chemistry with Joel Embiid. The league should be scared.
Kelly Olynyk knocked down a buzzer-beater to beat the Hornets last night. Here it is:
That was a great game between Charlotte and Detroit. Cade Cunningham was very good down the stretch. LaMelo Ball has quietly hit a wall — he went 6-24 last night, part of a difficult stretch for him.
Last night was rock bottom for the Lakers. They got clapped by the Pelicans and were booed out of their home arena. They looked disengaged and generally annoyed. Both Russell Westbrook and LeBron James were committing turnovers all over the place. James looked a step slow with that knee injury, and seemed frustrated all game. He still shot 13-23 and had 32 points, because even when he doesn’t play well, he plays well.
New York City will lift the Key2NYC vaccine mandate on March 7. A private sector mandate still prevents Kyrie Irving from playing home games, but it is very possible that the private sector mandate will be lifted at least in time for the postseason.
The Nuggets’ Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., who have been out for all or most of this season, are expected to return in time for the playoffs, if not sooner, The Athletic reported. The Nuggets are playing very well already. They’re real contenders with everyone healthy, though Murray and Porter will both need time to acclimate.