Heading into the preseason with the roster that the Dallas Mavericks have assembled, you have to think that coach Jason Kidd will need some time to tinker with his rotation prior to the regular season.
With a plethora of high-quality bigs and wings, and the addition of Cooper Flagg, I would personally struggle determining my own starting lineup, not to mention a functioning rotation.
With Kyrie Irving out until (at least) late season, the Mavs made a move to bring on D’Angelo Russell. Other guards include Max Christie, Jaden Hardy, Brandon Williams and Dennis Smith Jr. A few weeks back, there were rumors that the Mavericks would consider looking at utilizing Flagg in the back court, seeing as they are overflowing with starting-caliber talent in their front court. And who knows? Maybe Kidd tries that out. We do know that AD is expected to be available right away in preseason games after recovering from surgery for a detached retina. Fingers crossed everyone else reaches the start of the season without any injury issues.
The preseason is useful not only for ramping back up to regular season speed and getting used to new faces, it also serves as a window for lineup experimentation. The Mavericks may need to utilize it for the latter more than most teams in the league. An over-abundance of talent is certainly not a bad thing, but it presents you with a tough decision on who to start, who to sub, what personnel to use in situational offense and defense, and how to get the most out of each of your guys.
If the season started tomorrow and a final decision was required as soon as possible on the starting lineup and each starter’s respective subs, what would your lineup look like?
