Checking in on the Mavericks -What Is The Plan?
Still in the endless evolution process, let's try to sort this current roster out a bit.
On the surface, it appears that the Dallas Mavericks are improving. They have a better roster than last year's disaster, and part of that improvement is attributed to last year. They were rewarded for their awfulness in the form of one of their very best pieces moving forward, so it is difficult to be too upset with how it happened.
However, it should surely tell us that this team can play poorly enough to miss a 20-team postseason in a 30-team league. Frankly, in the 5th and 6th years of having one of the best players in the world on your roster, that should be impossible.
Should be, but obviously is not.
So, as the Mavericks push past the "halfway" sign of the NBA season last week, I thought it would make plenty of sense to check in on the roster. The deadline is approaching, and they have a couple of "high-interest" home games this week with Boston last night and Phoenix tomorrow.
The initial indicators after the Boston game are pretty clear. There is a ways to go, and this team does not resemble a contender at this point in time. They looked utterly outclassed last night against the gold standard in the East. Boston came to town on the 2nd night of a back-to-back and rested our old friend Kristaps Porzingis after a Sunday win in Houston. The Mavericks had not played since last Wednesday and had taken the unexpected layoff to get in some much-needed practice sessions. It seemed like a great chance to claim a scalp.
Instead, they were beaten pretty handily and shown that while they may be better than last year's team, they are not close to where they need to be. After racing to an 8-2 start to begin the season, they have spent the last 33 games as a 16-17 team. They have an offensive rating that sits 11th, a defensive rating at 18th, and a net of 13th.
Yes, they are a better team than they were, and there can be room for some optimism from this point forward if better health is enjoyed.
But, no, they are not very close to being called a contender and are also squarely in the play-in mix rather than on pace to secure a Top 6 seed that will allow them to skip that initial phase.
In other words, better. But, not close to where they need to be. Jason Kidd is in his 3rd season at the helm:
Year 1 was excellent and full of newness that included a 52-win season and a Western Conference Finals berth.
Year 2 was a step backwards and a team at the end that was happy to miss the top 10 spots in the West to finish 11th, keep their pick, and reboot with 38 wins.
Year 3 is somewhere in the middle. Not nearly as good as Year 1 and not nearly as bad as Year 2. Subjectively, there are reasons to be optimistic, but also subjectively, Kidd is losing belief from the public as the man who can get this crew to the next level.
It is pretty safe to say that despite Doncic playing at perhaps the highest level of his career and having the most talented player he has ever had on his roster now that Kyrie Irving has secured his future here, the team looks a bit "stuck" in that they are now an average NBA team in the standings.
If you took all 30 teams and stacked them, you could probably place the Mavericks between about 13th and 16th, somewhere right smack in the middle.
And as a certain Slovenian's 25th birthday arrives next month, twenty days after the February 8th trade deadline passes, there must be a sense of urgency about this situation. Western Conference Finals at Age 23 might have been a bit ahead of schedule. But, following that up with the lottery at Age 24 and perhaps the play-in round at Age 25 is not close to where this thing needs to be.
If we are suggesting that he is one of the best in the world and playing at a higher level than he ever has, and now has a No. 2 who is the best co-pilot Luka has enjoyed, then that is a major indictment on the build as a whole to find them right at mid-table in the NBA.