The Dallas Mavs find themselves in an intriguing situation as the season progresses. There's no disputing that if they made better moves around the NBA trade deadline, they would have a much better chance of winning in the playoffs, but they didn't do anything to aid this squad right now.

Obviously, trading a player like Kristaps Porzingis wasn't the worst decision the Mavs could've made, but it didn't make much sense at the time. Given the return, it may not have been the ideal decision for the Mavs in terms of contending right now, but they still have some guys on their roster that, if they play their best basketball at the appropriate time, they could be a team that finds a lot of success in the playoffs.

Let's take a look at why the Mavs are both contenders and pretenders.

Winning an NBA title is never easy. As we have seen with the past 20 champions, every team is going to need something significant to go their way. Whether that is an unfortunate injury to someone, or having guys on the roster step up more than they ever have. There is a reason why winning a championship is so hard, and a reason why we have seen crazy upsets in the past. If a team is going to win a title, they’re going to need everyone on their roster to be playing the best basketball they possibly can, and even sometimes that isn’t enough to get the job done.

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Mavs pretenders or contenders?

Contenders

2. As the lone star, Luka has the potential to carry a team

There's no doubt about Luka's skill. If he's on his game, he's one of those players that can take over a game at any moment and score 45-plus points per night on the opposition.

The Mavs will need LukaDoncic to play some of the best basketball of his career if they are to have any chance of winning in the playoffs. Outside of him, there's no disputing that they don't have another player who can take over a game when it matters most, which is something that championship teams normally neeed.

1. One of the best defenses in the NBA

The old saying that defense wins championships is certainly accurate. In recent memory, the majority of NBA championship teams have been at least above-average defensively. Apart from Luka, the first thing that comes to mind while looking at this Mavs squad is their outstanding defense.

Jason Kidd did an excellent job of adopting a variety of defensive strategies, which has resulted in them being one of the top defensive teams in the NBA. Now the question will be if their defense can provide enough for their struggling offense at times, because even if their defense performs admirably, there are still doubts about whether they have enough on the offensive side of the ball.

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Pretenders

2. Despite the lack of a second star, can Luka carry this team?

The most serious problem has arisen once more.

The challenge that this Dallas Mavericks team will confront throughout the playoffs is finding a second player who can truly take over a game.

The issue now is whether Luka can truly carry them through the playoffs. The basic answer is that they absolutely need more than just him, but he is clearly skilled enough to be a championship team's number one option.

1. Who is going to be the second option?

Aside from Luka, there isn't anyone on this Mavs roster that can be considered a legitimate second option on a championship team. Jalen Brunson, Tim Hardaway Jr. (if he returns), Spencer Dinwiddie, and perhaps a few others are clearly above-average NBA players, but they aren't talented enough to be a championship team's second option.

If the Mavs are to have any success in the second half of the season and in the playoffs, they'll need someone to figure out how to be the team's second ptiion. If they don't solve that problem, it'll be difficult to say that this team can contend for an NBA title, unless Luka is scoring over 45 points per night, which is very feasible.

Dallas didn't do a good job at the trade deadline or in the offseason before the season, and now they're paying the price. If they want to be the team that everyone knows they can be in a few years, they'll have to make better judgments and add guys who can surround Luka as role players as well as someone who can be that second star.