The Dallas Mavericks ended up with the 6’7” 20-year-old Sergio De Larrea on draft night following not one, but two trades. He was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers, traded to the New York Knicks, and landed with the Mavericks in a series of trades that, to this day, I can’t comprehend. He joins a Dallas team in desperate need at the point guard position after spending the last two seasons with Valencia, of EuroLeague, where his role grew each year.
He joins a talented and crowded Mavericks team,
though one missing table-setters. After a strong NBA Summer League performance and flashes of great play in the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers, De Larrea will have a chance to make an impact on a team in Dallas that hopes to take a huge leap forward this season.
Big Question
For a rookie on a busy Dallas roster, this is simple: where do De Larrea’s minutes come from? For the sake of argument, let’s assume Dereck Lively is out to start the season. These are the players who should get minutes before Sergio: Kyrie Irving, Cooper Flagg, PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford, Max Christie, Naji Marshall, Morez Johnson Jr., Zaccharie Risacher, and Santi Aldama.
If you can do some math, that puts De Larrea firmly in the 9-10-11th man list and that’s by me, random writer, not the Dallas coaching staff.
However, I think if Dallas hopes to compete down the stretch and make a run at a spot in the Play-In Tournament, he needs to be getting regular situational minutes. The NBA is a league where you learn by doing, and that means playing time.
Best Case Scenario
There are two here, depending on how one decides to read the prompt. The best-case scenario for De Larrea individually is that injuries force him out of the frying pan and into the fire. I have no means of justifying this take yet, but I firmly believe this is the type of player who will produce and improve rapidly if put immediately into the fire of an NBA game. But the scenario in which De Larrea is getting consistent minutes is also one where the Mavs are likely having a rough go at things.
For the Mavericks, the best-case scenario is that they’re able to win regularly enough while putting him into game action at times when it most benefits what they want him to learn. While I know the coaching staff would agree the feet-first approach might be best, the team has a crowded roster with veterans, and this means De Larrea is going to have to earn his minutes.
The most realistic best-case scenario is somewhere in the middle of these two. Kyrie Irving playing 65 games would mean fewer minutes for Sergio, but I also expect Irving to give Dallas 50 games, and anything else is a bonus. That leaves many, many minutes for someone who can run the offense.
Worst Case Scenario
If De Larrea has a lackluster rookie campaign, it will also relate back to minutes. The only real concern I have is if he cannot pick up what the coaching staff has in store for the team on either end of the floor. Lucky for us, that seems very unlikely, and it’s believed that the coaching staff and front office are very confident in the Spaniard.
Or an injury. Sergio’s body type is thin, and the NBA is a punishing, relentless experience. But all rookies are skinny comparably, so this is much ado about nothing.
But perhaps I am being too positive for once.
Season Goal
Let’s get crazy: Sergio De Larrea makes an All Rookie team! It’s going to be hard with this class, but I believe in him.
Overall
I am putting too much stock in De Larrea. But I can’t help it; Dallas has Cooper Flagg and it’s time to get this show on the road for the future. Most of these other guys won’t be on the team in three years. Don’t believe me? Kyrie Irving is the longest-tenured Dallas Maverick (I am not counting Dwight Powell until he’s on the actual roster). Things change fast in the NBA, and a guard like De Larrea is it for me. He can shoot it from deep, he’s tall, and he seems unafraid. You can go to battle with that.
