Mavs Media Day Follow-Up: Three Observations Still Resonating

Plenty was said, this is what might matter most

Oct 01, 2024

Mavs basketball is finally back!

Media Day was yesterday, marking the first chance to hear from all rotation players and head coach Jason Kidd since the Finals.

With training camp kicking off and preseason games on the horizon, I’m shifting focus to more game-related content.

The plan during the season is to cover games with a mix of shorter, numbered list-style pre-game previews and post-game observations—similar to the format many of you might remember from my Twitter threads last season, but now moving to Substack. So, in-season coverage will be a balance between these formats and the deeper, long-form analysis that’s been the core of my offseason content.

Today’s Mavs Media Day coverage will follow that observation-style format (though it might not be that short), highlighting my main takeaways and key storylines I’ve picked out after listening to all the interviews.

1 - Excitement and ambition

The first thing that stood out from listening to everyone was just how excited they were for the upcoming season and for this version of the Mavericks team. Dončić said he can’t wait to play with Thompson. The latter said he can’t wait to get going, learn the Mavericks’ system, and added that Dončić's ability to read the pick-and-roll is probably the best he’s ever seen. Kidd mentioned that this will probably be one of the most exciting training camps he’s been a part of, while Thompson described this preseason as the most important one he’s had in many years. And both have been part of great teams and won championships before.

Speaking of championships, it was evident that everyone sees winning a title as the only goal and expectation for an upgraded team coming off an NBA Finals appearance. Dončić chose “championship” as the one word to describe next season. Kidd was just as direct, openly stating that the expectation in the locker room is to win a championship. Kyrie Irving, in his more colorful style, said, “Our dreams can be possible because he’s (Thompson) here now, and he’s added some great value to our championship aspirations.” Lastly, Thompson explained that he chose Dallas because he saw how close they were to winning a championship and said he is going to work his hardest to help get them back there.

2 - Spacing and shooting

My first in-depth analysis on digginbasketball Substack was about shooting and spacing—specifically, the lack of it that proved problematic in the Finals, and how Thompson and other offseason additions should drastically change that dynamic and push the Mavericks toward a top-five offense. It was not surprising but still interesting that two new additions, Quentin Grimes and Spencer Dinwiddie, brought up this issue when assessing the Mavericks’ playoff run. Dinwiddie mentioned that the Celtics having five guys on the floor who could shoot was what made the difference in the Finals. Grimes added that just watching the Mavericks in the playoffs, you could tell that shooting was a big emphasis for them this offseason. And if you want the coach’s perspective, Kidd similarly pointed to offense—specifically shooting the ball better—as the key area they could have improved in the Finals.

Enter Klay Thompson, whom most of his new teammates described as one of the greatest shooters of all time.

Apart from "exciting" and "championship," "spacing" was one of the most frequently mentioned words on Media Day. Thompson explained how his ability to space the floor for Luka and Kyrie will add a whole new dimension to the offense. Dončić agreed, saying that when he and Irving have the ball, defenses won’t be able to help off Klay, making spacing crucial. Kidd emphasized how important spacing is in today’s NBA and how having one of the best shooters of all time will create the necessary gravity and make the game offensively easier.

The focus on improving shooting and spacing shouldn’t come as a surprise. I mentioned several times last season that the Mavericks sacrificed some of that for size and defense during their trade deadline makeover. Yesterday was just further proof of how high restoring that balance has been on the Mavericks’ offseason agenda.

3-Competition and rotation battles

The Mavericks are 15-man deep, and figuring out the pecking order in the rotation was one of the more challenging parts of my analysis during the offseason. When I did my first rotation chart, I mentioned I’d update it as we receive new information, and Media Day is typically when those first signals start to appear. Here are some of Kidd’s key comments from yesterday about the rotation:

"On paper, we got a lot of starting guards, starting centers. We got a lot of starters. And so I think when you look at training camp, and just talking to the guys before I came out, we’re going to instigate competition in training camp. We’re going to instigate competition in practice."
"We know that we can go out on a limb and say there are two guys or three guys that are going to start."
"I think we can look at both of them (Gafford and Lively) as having the opportunity to start at some point this season, not just because of injury. But we’ll see how one is playing and if we can help the other. So to answer your question, it’s open, but we’re probably going to start D-Live with the first group and see how that goes."

The only real news here is that Lively will be the starting center on opening night. I’d assume Kidd was referring to Dončić, Irving, and Thompson as the three clear-cut starters. The bench guard rotation is still unclear and is where the training camp battles will be fierce. Based on that, here’s the updated Mavericks depth chart:

There were two other comments during the pressers that stood out when considering training camp position battles. The first was Kidd mentioning Jaden Hardy as a player who’s been patiently waiting and will get his opportunity this season. The second was Olivier-Maxence Prosper stating that he definitely feels he’ll have a bigger role this season and later adding how much more prepared he is to contribute in his sophomore year compared to his rookie season. Those two comments weren’t enough to move either of the Mavericks’ young prospects higher in the depth chart, but seeing how much opportunity the ‘young wave’ will get is something to keep an eye on in training camp and the first preseason games.

Bonus point: immaculate health vibes

Health is always something to watch closely when players return after long absences, especially for those who dealt with nagging injuries the last time we saw them play or picked up new ones over the summer. There have been some significant injury updates with players missing training camps across the league: Kawhi Leonard, Kristaps Porzingis, Mitchell Robinson, Devin Vassell, GG Jackson II, and Vince Williams Jr. are among the most notable names who will be sidelined at the start of the regular season. Seeing this kind of injury report for the Mavericks is another reason for optimism heading into training camp.

Even better, the updates on all key players who were dealing with injuries were very positive, as all are set to be full participants in training camp:

Dončić looked great—rested and in high spirits. Dante Exum’s finger injury from the Olympics is a thing of the past, and he’s fully healthy and ready to go. Grimes reported his knee is now 100 percent, and Maxi Kleber shared that his foot feels good, with no lingering issues from his previous shoulder injury.

Irving confirmed his hand is feeling much better. His detailed explanation of what he’s doing for his longevity was great to hear and made Media Day worthwhile:

“You're gonna take some hits, and you just have to learn how to fall as well. And to all the young kids out there, or even some of my peers, just learning how to fall is also a key to longevity. You can't control it all the time, but when you can, do so. And that starts in the weight room—it starts in the little nuances of the game that I work on to help me with my balance, core strength, and being mentally confident and prepared for taking those hits. To add to that, I've just become more of a two-foot jumper than just a single-foot jumper at the rim, so I have more options off of two feet. And if I do need to finish off of one, I’m still being aggressive and athletic enough to do so.”

The thoughtfulness and effort Irving puts into preparing his body to compete at the highest level are just more reasons to believe his peak could last at least a few more years. For those who missed it, here’s the link to my analysis on Irving’s remaining peak years.

This was, if not the most positive, certainly the most ambitious Media Day of the Dončić era. It’s why this season will be so fun and intriguing to watch. I hope you’ll be here with us along for the ride!