When is it time for the Dallas Mavericks to panic?

The Dallas Mavericks are 11-12, stand 7th in the West, and after losing 8 of the last 10, things couldn’t feel much more grim these days. Coming off a 4th quarter collapse where the Mavs chocked their lead away by means of horrific shooting, many MFFL are wondering what can be done.

The Mavs didn’t have the offseason they were hoping for this summer. Failing to draw interest from any of the top free agents, the Mavs settled on players like Reggie Bullock and Sterling Brown. It’s safe to say things haven’t gotten much better since.

When is it time for the Dallas Mavericks to make a trade and give Luka Doncic a team he can work with?

Last night was a great example of what Luka Doncic has had to deal with this season. Against the Nets the Dallas Mavericks went 9 of 46 from behind the arch. After going 19.6% from three-point range, it’s a miracle they didn’t lose by more than 3-points.

Yesterday’s events didn’t pop up out of nowhere. There have been roster issues all year long. Shooting 33% from beyond the arch, the Mavs rank 24th in the NBA in 3pt percentage. Despite those putrid numbers, they are in the top-5 in 3pt attempts. Doing things you aren’t particularly good at a very high volume isn’t a very sound strategy now is?

It’s clear what the Mavs want to do is different from what they have the ability to do.

Or perhaps the sample is too small and those numbers will regress to the mean organically? That’s the thing, we don’t know if these are just the ebbs and flows of a normal NBA season or if this just what this team is.

Which brings us to the topic of conversation today. Are the Dallas Mavericks in need of a roster move or should they wait it out and see if their issues can be resolved internally?

Charles Barkley seems to think the Mavs need to improve around Luka and most of us tend to agree. We’ve wanted to improve around Luka for a few years now, frankly. But wanting is different from being able to. The Mavs aren’t exactly loaded with desirable trade bait.

We may want Myles Turner, but the Pacers are going to want something back.

The smart thing to do is the only thing the Dallas Mavericks can do and that’s wait it out. Clearly they can’t keep taking such a high volume of long distance shots. Coaching strategy is going to have to change.

As far as roster decisions, the Dallas Mavericks made their bed and now they have to lie in it.

• Published on 12/08/2021 at 19:29 PM
• Last updated at 12/08/2021 at 19:34 PM