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Pundits expected the Dallas Mavericks to be a team on the rise entering the 2019-20 NBA regular season.
The team, after all, has the luxury of possessing the promising European duo of Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis.
Doncic’s ascent to superstardom certainly accelerated Dallas’ supposed rebuild. Currently holding down the seventh seed in the competitive Western Conference with a 36-24 slate, the Mavs are primed to return to the postseason for the first time since 2016.
Here are four keys for Dallas to be able to make it back to the playoffs this season.
Stay healthy
Despite the effectiveness of their starting unit, the Rick Carlisle-mentored team is not as deep they wish to be. Dallas already lost Dwight Powell to an Achilles injury earlier this season. Despite picking up Willie Cauley-Stein and Michael Kidd Gilchrist to boost their frontcourt, Dallas still appears outgunned compared to some of the most stacked teams in the division.
Their prized center Porzingis, meanwhile, has already sat out 14 of Dallas’ first 60 games this season. Keeping him fresh ensures the Mavs’ offense a second option on offense. Keeping him on the floor also alleviates some of the load off Doncic’s shoulders.
Speaking of Doncic, Dallas will go as far as the Slovenian star takes them. His health is undoubtedly the Mavs’ number one priority moving forward. The team managed to keep things afloat when Doncic missed some time earlier in the season, but his absence will no longer fly come playoff time.
Porzingis has to regain All-Star form
After missing all of last year due to an ACL injury, Kristaps Porzingis seems to be adjusting just fine in his first tenure in Texas. The 7-foot-3 Latvian is averaging 18.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks, while shooting 42 percent from the field and 35.4 percent from past the arc.
With centers like Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid emerging as the best bigs in the league today, most fans have already forgotten that The Unicorn was an All-Star before going down with an injury.
Playing as the second option behind Doncic upon his return is a blessing for Porizingis since he does not have to be the go-to guy like he was with the New York Knicks.
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KP, however, must get back to where he was pre-injury to give the Mavs a fighting chance against some of the best teams in the West.
Make Seth Curry more involved on offense
The Mavs failed to address their need for a third scoring option in the trade deadline. With that said, they must work with what they have and try and give Seth Curry more touches on offense. The younger Curry is one of the best pure shooters this season, notching a 48.8 percent clip from the field and a staggering 44.8 success rate from past the arc.
His career-high 37-point explosion against the Miami Heat on Friday is evidenced by his ability to score buckets in bunches.
Up assist numbers
Dallas is top 5 in the league in some major categories including points and rebounds per game. But the team is right in the middle of the pack (14th in the league) in terms of dishing the rock at just 24.4 dimes per game.
Doncic leads the pack with 8.7 assists per night, but the team does not get much assist beyond that. JJ Barea (3.9 per game) follow, while Delon Wright and Jalen Brunson norm 3.3 per game.
