There is basketball to be played in the NBA even during the dog days of the summer. And for many others, it's an opportunity to shine and take advantage of the absences of the superstars. That's the same case for the Dallas Mavericks in the 2023 NBA Summer League.

While Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving are on vacation and taking their sweet time off away, other Mavs, especially the young ones, are about to go down to work in Las Vegas. Not all of them are going to make the final roster cut, but a few are definitely worth keeping an eye on because of their potential to become an impact player for the Mavs, beginning in the 2023-24 NBA season.

3. Olivier-Maxence Prosper

O-Max was another product of the Mavs’ wheeling and dealing on draft day, as they acquired him from the Sacramento Kings, who selected the former Marquette Golden Eagles star in the first round (24th overall).

Prosper isn’t projected to be an immediate contributor for the Mavs in Year 1, but his progress should be a fun one to monitor. The 6-8 forward can make things happen on both ends of the floor.

“They love my versatility defensively,” Prosper told Ben Steele of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel after he declared for the 2023 NBA Draft. “My ability to guard 1 through 5. They love my upside, what I can bring to the NBA because the NBA today is positionless basketball.

The tools are there for Prosper to, uhm, prosper, as he has been measured with a 7-foot-1 wingspan and a 40.5 max vertical leap. Against the level of competition in the Summer League, Prospect can be expected to display his versatility, especially on defense, though, he is also someone who can attack the basket by putting the ball on the floor. Could he be a piece the Mavericks can look forward to becoming some sort of a Dorian Finney-Smith successor? The Summer League can provide some answers to that.

Prosper, who started his college career with the Clemson Tigers before playing two seasons with the Golden Eagles, averaged 12.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 0.9 steals per game in his final college basketball season in 2022-23. He showed improvement on his 3-point shooting that campaign, making 33.9 percent of his shots from deep after draining only 28.2 percent in the previous two years.

2. Dereck Lively II

The Mav swung a deal on draft day with the Oklahoma City Thunder to acquire the rights to the former Duke Blue Devils star big man. The Mavs sent Davis Bertans and No. 10 pick Cason Wallace to the Thunder for Lively, who averaged 5.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game during his lone year in Durham.

Lively was interesting get for the Mavs in the 2023 NBA Draft, as most other teams did not look for a center early. But he stands to help address some of Dallas’ pressing needs, particularly with his rebounding and defense. Last season, the Mavs were just 16th in the league in scoring defense and 19th in points allowed in the paint per game. Teams also shot over 56 percent inside the arc against Dallas. The 2023 NBA Summer League will be a perfect environment for the Mavs to check out how close Lively is to living up to the billing in just his first season in the pros.

1. Jaden Hardy

Hardy could emerge as the brightest star in the 2023 NBA Summer League for the Mavs. Fresh off a pleasant rookie season in the league, Hardy is ready to show that there’s still so much room left to be filled by his potential.

“I feel more seasoned,” Hardy said ahead of this year's Summer League (h/t Grant Afseth of Sports Illustrated) “I feel like I had a good summer league debut last year, but we didn't get to win. We didn't win last year, but that's my main goal this year is to get wins, you know? And I feel like going into what I know now versus from last year going into summer league, I for sure feel like I'm more prepared.”

Hardy averaged 8.8 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 14.8 minutes per game in the 2022-23 NBA season. He shot just 43.8 percent from the field but kept a 57.1 true shooting percentage thanks to his 40.4 percent success rate from behind the arc and 82.3 percent from the foul line.

Expect Hardy to get a significant role on offense for the Mavs in the Summer League, as he continues to build on his confidence. He’s already got a lot of that, as evidenced by the fact that he’s the first Dallas rookie to generate at least 20 points in each of his first three starts.