Dallas Mavericks Offensive Play Type
A brief review of the team in the past few seasons
It had not been too long for the Mavericks’ fans to move through their dark night when the team could not enter the playoff in the last Dirk seasons. Before Dirk retired at the end of the 2018–19 season, the Mavericks missed the playoff three times in a row. However, during rebuilding, they got Dennis Smith Jr. in the 9th NBA 2017 draft and selected Luka Dončić in the 3rd 2018 draft. Mavericks was for making the formidable backcourt duo, but only a season later did the Mavericks traded Dennis Smith Jr to Knicks for Kristaps Porziņģis. They believed that when this tall, talented young guy was healthy, he could help Luka make the magic. Indeed, after the trade, they entered the playoff every year. Unfortunately, the team never had Porziņģis healthy bounce-back season. He played only 100 games in the two seasons of 2019–20 and 2020–21. Mavericks wanted to see more chemistry between Luka and Porziņģis. In the 2021–22 season, the Mavericks hired the new head coach, Jason Kidd, and made a big trade in the middle of the season. Porziņģis was traded to Wizard in exchange for Spencer Dinwiddie and Dāvis Bertāns. New young cores were established. Leading by Luka, Jalen Brunson, and Dinwiddle, the Mavericks showed their talent on the court, defeating the Jazz and Suns in the playoff.
The Mavericks Offense Style
We compared the team’s offensive styles to those of the league in the charts below. Maverick appears as a block of dots, and the league appears as orange dots. The possession percentage (POSS PCT) on the y-axis indicates how frequently each offense occurs. The effectiveness of each offense type is shown by the points per possession (PPP) on the y-axis.
Since the addition of young cores to the team in 2018, their transition percentage has increased. It remains below the league average, though. Dončić is not the quick guard who can make the team play faster and start a quick one-on-one or two on the break; instead, he typically has an excellent pass for one of his teammates running ahead. As the other young cores gain experience on the court, they improve their transition on quality than quantity.
Pick-and-roll is a popular strategy among Mavericks. Dončić, a talented ball handler, is a crucial component of their offense. He can make accurate decisions from the various defensive strategies and makes good passes, allowing his teammates to take advantage of open shots. That is a part of why their spotup percentage is over the league. With the exception of the Dončić, Porziņģis pose a threat as a roll-man. With his unique height, he could pop to shoot threes and roll to dunk. He could also make a good cut and rush for the offensive rebound. The Mavericks’ pick-and-roll roll man and offensive rebound possession percentages are closer to the league average during his healthier years in 2018, 2019, and 2020. Even though he had physical issues while playing with the Mavericks, he added height and space to the court.
Lastly, the interesting trend is Isolation. Before the Dončić generation, Dirk and Mavericks played the isolation. However, the effectiveness was not good. After 2018, the Mavericks utilized their star players by incorporating more combinations and chemistries on the floor. Until 2021, after the transaction involving Dinwiddie and Porziņģis, the Mavericks possessed three players — Dončić, Dinwiddie, and Brunson — who could play one-on-one. They successfully produce mismatches on the half-court offense while preserving the field goal percentage. Especially in the playoff, Brunson cooked on the court when Doncic was out of the games.
Next Season
The addition of Christian Wood and the departure of Jalen Brunson are Dallas’s most significant roster changes. We can speculate that Dončić might become worn out due to the lack of a playmaker. Putting Dinwiddie or Tim Hardaway Jr. in the starting lineup might be necessary. Both of these players are capable of more than just making threes. Additionally, Wood can offer the space to make up for Porziņģis left. Wood will be more adept than Powell at creating more combinations with Doncic on the court, despite being shorter than Porziņģis and not a good rim protector.
