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2023-24 season: 50-32
Highlight of the season: Beating the Minnesota Timberwolves convincingly in five games, with Luka Dončić playing on one leg, is not just up there as the highlight of the season for the Mavericks, but as one of the biggest highlights of the entire league.
How it ended
In utter heartbreak. The Mavericks made it to the Finals by showing their muscles, only to fade away with a whimper against the Boston Celtics, showing very little fight in the process.
The Finals loss will sit firmly on the team’s mind for the rest of the summer, but there are positive takeaways from this season, such as winning the West in a year when the field of competitors was one of the strongest in years. Dallas also saw how a team led by Dončić and Kyrie Irving could fare with more time together, and the Mavs found a playing style that seems sustainable for at least another few years.
After Dallas acquired P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford at the trade deadline, the franchise started playing a new brand of physical bully-ball, punishing teams inside on the glass while providing Dončić with more passing targets. This formula still needs some tweaking for future seasons, but it’s a blueprint that brought them further than ever in the Dončić era, meaning there’s plenty of reason to roll most of the roster back.
That said, the Mavericks did see multiple role players wither away in the Finals, with Josh Green, Maxi Kleber and Tim Hardaway Jr. not making strong cases for themselves for the future. All three are under contract for next season, accounting for over $39 million, and it’s reasonable to wonder if any of them return next season, or if they’ll be moved during the offseason.
Luka Dončić of the Dallas Mavericks walks off the floor during the fourth quarter of Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on June 17, 2024, in Boston. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
By making the Finals, the Mavericks are now on the clock. They don’t want to make this a one-off experience, and that means identifying new role players who fit the makeup of the team better and who understand how to optimize…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/dallas-mavericks-2024-nba-offseason-preview-its-time-to-add-some-shooters-around-the-superstars-032855615.html
Author : Yahoo Sports
Publish date : 2024-06-18 03:28:55
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