The Dallas Mavericks have been doing an admirable job of holding down the fort in the absences of Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic in recent weeks, currently sitting five games above .500 ahead of Tuesday evening's tilt with the Denver Nuggets. Some of Dallas' wins in their stretch without both stars have included a recent home demolition of the Los Angeles Lakers, which was arguably the team's most impressive performance of the season considering the circumstances.

One player who has been a key part of keeping the Mavericks afloat in this rough injury period is second year big man Dereck Lively II, who recently took to ESPN to break down how the team has been able to find success despite the circumstances.

“We've just been leaning on each other, learning, and growing together as a team,” said Lively, per NBA on ESPN on X.

Can the Mavericks keep this up?

Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) reacts from the team bench during the second half of the game against the Denver Nuggets at the American Airlines Center.
Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Mavericks added quite a bit of depth to their roster this past offseason. The most notable name they acquired was future Hall of Fame shooting guard Klay Thompson, but the team also made some lower profile signings, like Quentin Grimes and Naji Marshall, each of whom have had big performances recently to help the team stay afloat.

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The team has also seen continued solid production from Lively, who is one of the best up and coming big men in the league and forms a very solid center duo alongside Daniel Gafford.

Of course, the Mavericks can only truly be judged when both Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving are back on the floor and healthy, and when that was the case this season, Dallas looked once again like a true contender and a team capable of once again going on a deep playoff run.

The lack of perimeter shooting and point of attack defense that plagued the team in their NBA Finals loss to the Boston Celtics appears to have been improved by the Mavericks' offseason additions, and the team is clearly capable of weathering the storm when injury absences occur.

The Mavericks will next take the floor at home against the Nuggets on Tuesday at 9:30 PM ET from Dallas.