The Dallas Mavericks are wrapping up their week off while the NBA Cup progresses, and will hope to carry over the momentum that built just before the break. Winners of four of their last five due to the blossoming
play of Ryan Nembhard and the ascendancy of Cooper Flagg, combined with ace veteran support.
This week’s Power Rankings Watch focuses on that rising play and how the Mavericks have started to show signs of life. Whether the Mavericks can maintain consistency, especially as trade talks around the league ramp up, remains to be seen. But the excitement building around the step up in play is worth celebrating. Especially as the younger players on the roster solidify roles after a rocky start to the year.
ESPN
Rank: 19
Last week: 22
Biggest weakness: Shot creation
A lack of shot creation has been the Mavericks’ most glaring issue, but there has been drastic improvement since undrafted rookie Ryan Nembhard‘s insertion into the starting lineup. Nembhard, who led the nation in assists as a Gonzaga senior last season, has averaged 14.8 points, 6.8 assists and only 1.3 turnovers in six games as a starter. Dallas has gone 4-2 in that span, scoring 120.6 points per 100 possessions while climbing out of last place in the seasonlong offensive efficiency rankings. At 5-foot-11, Nembhard has some defensive deficiencies that create doubt about whether he can be a long-term starter, but the Mavericks project his floor as at least a high-quality backup. — MacMahon
NBA
Rank: 19
Last week: 22
Anthony Davis has played in four straight games (including both ends of a back-to-back this weekend), and the Mavs have won four of their last five. The last three wins came against the Nuggets, Heat and Rockets.
Three takeaways
- The Mavs have climbed out of the basement in offensive efficiency, with the last five games being, easily, their best stretch on that end of the floor (119.9 points scored per 100 possessions) this season. Cooper Flagg still isn’t connecting from beyond the arc, but he’s averaged a team-high 23.2 points over the five games, shooting 9-for-18 from mid-range and 65% in the paint.
- The Mavs’ win in Houston on Saturday was the Rockets’ first loss in a game that wasn’t within five points in the last five minutes. The Mavs have still played the most clutch games in the league (18), and Flagg is now 16-for-27 (59%) on clutch shots, the second-best mark among 28 players who’ve attempted at least 20. He’s also 19-for-21 (90%) on clutch free throws.
- Dereck Lively II has missed the last eight games, and Daniel Gafford has missed all but 14 minutes of the last five after re-aggravating his ankle injury on Wednesday. So Davis has played 90% of his minutes (in his 10 total games) at center. The percentage of his shots that have come in the paint (63%) is higher than his rate (55%) in nine games with the Mavs last season, but still down from his 72% over his last 2 1/2 seasons with the Lakers.
Coming up: The Mavs’ nine games (they’re 4-5) against the East are tied for the most among Western Conference teams thus far, and they were given an extra game against the Nets, who they’ll host on Friday.
The Athletic
Rank: 19 (Tier 4: Not the Tier to Fear)
Last week: 24
First-quarter grade: D-
This was a quality week for the Mavericks, as they beat three teams with winning records. Some teams haven’t done that all season, so the arrow continues to point up. As far as 20-game starts go, this was Dallas’ worst since the last team that didn’t have Luka Dončić on it to begin a season (2017-18). For a team as big as Dallas, it has a bottom-five offensive rebound rate, and injuries to centers Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II mean that Anthony Davis is playing center next to forward Cooper Flagg and P.J. Washington; Davis, Gafford and Lively have yet to play in the same game this season.
Bleacher Report
Rank: 19
Last week: 25
Are the Dallas Mavericks suddenly…kind of…good?
They’ve won three straight (including a road victory over the Denver Nuggets), are 4-3 in their last seven, and were within single digits in three of their last four losses.
And while the return of Anthony Davis certainly helped in the last two wins, the improved play can largely be chalked up to coinciding improvements from two rookies.
During the three-game winning streak, Cooper Flagg is putting up 27.0 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, while Ryan Nembhard is adding 17.0 points and 8.7 assists.
