There's no denying that Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic has been one of, if not the best player in the entire league early on. It's also true, however, that it's highly improbable that he will be able to carry the Mavs by himself. In order for this team to succeed this season, Luka's teammates need to step up and help their star.
One player that is expected to share the load with Doncic is offseason recruit Christian Wood. However, the 27-year-old has yet to start a game for the Mavs this year. At this point, it seems that coach Jason Kidd is more than happy to have Wood come off the bench.
This has been quite a polarizing issue among fans and pundits alike. Should Wood get the start alongside Doncic or is he more valuable as part of the second unit? For his part, Luka may have already revealed his true feelings about this matter.
Speaking after Sunday's loss to Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, Doncic talked up the Mavs' lineup to open the second half. Wood was part of that group, and he was integral to Dallas as they got themselves within striking distance of Milwaukee:
“It's a good lineup,” said Doncic. “I don't know exactly who was in — it's a lot of lineups. Christian [Wood] is a great player and he helps us a lot.”
Mavs general manager Nico Harrison isn't too concerned with Wood's status as a starter, though. Harrison is just happy with what he's seen from Wood thus far, and he's decided to defer to Kidd and his staff with regard to the team's rotation:
“For me, I don't worry about who starts. I'll leave that up to the coaching staff on who starts,” Harrison said. “The thing is, he's doing such a great job of coming off the bench, a lot of times you don't want to mess that up.
“To me, it's getting your minutes. However you get your minutes throughout the game. As long as you're getting your minutes, that's the important thing.”
In 18 games so far this season, Christian Wood is averaging 16.3 points on 54.2-percent shooting, 7.7 rebounds, while also shooting 40.3 percent from distance on 3.4 attempts per game. Right now, the 6-foot-10 big man has emerged as one of the best bench players in the NBA.
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