OKC Thunder vs. Dallas Mavericks, 2019-20 team preview

Starting Rotation:

Although this could balance out over the season the uncertainty of the abilities of the three starters joining the star duo remains up in the air.

To this point, that trio is expected to be Delon Wright at the point, Tim Hardaway Jr. on the wing and Dwight Powell sidling up next to Porzingis in the frontcourt. Each has a role and specific requirement which will determine how successful the Mavericks can be this season.

In the case of Wright, his defensive abilities and overall two-way game should compliment Doncic and offset some of his defensive shortcomings. Likewise, the presence of Powell will allow Porzingis an opportunity to not have to defend the stronger opponent offensive big man. Although some weren’t sold on Powell after his first lackluster season in Dallas he’s improved yearly in Carlisle’s system.

The big question mark will be Hardaway Jr. Can he slide into the role of the tertiary scorer and will he be comfortable with his touches. Similarly, can he improve defensively? Last season in his limited appearances with Dallas, Hardaway posted the second-worst defensive box score. For the Mavericks to be in the mix for a playoff seed he’ll need to prove his mettle on both sides of the court.

Defense:

For the Mavericks to be among the elite Western Conference teams or at least vie for a playoff berth they’ll need to improve on the defensive side of the ball. Last season the team ranked 18th in the association but should be able to improve with the addition of Wright and Courtney Lee and the return of Porzingis.

There are gaps however such as Hardaway as noted above and Doncic will also need to improve his two-way effort. It might surprise some to learn he did post a positive defensive box score and was one of the better Mavericks in this regard last season. Having spent time this offseason working on his body and conditioning it will be interesting to see how much of a step he can make this season.