Mavs Lineup Combinations Remain Fluid Entering Season

After losing Jalen Brunson in free agency, the Dallas Mavericks' lineup choices remain fluid and open to experimentation.

The Dallas Mavericks entered last season using lineups that ended up undergoing significant changes. Kristaps Porzingis was supposed to be Luka Doncic's co-star but got traded, while Jalen Brunson and Reggie Bullock began in bench roles.

Brunson emerged as an integral backcourt partner with Doncic midseason last year then reached his peak in the playoffs. Given that Brunson departed, filling the void left behind by his departure has remained a priority. 

Long before the start of training camp, the Mavs locked in the returning starters of Doncic, Dinwiddie, and Dorian Finney-Smith in the lineup once again. Spencer Dinwiddie and JaVale McGee were also mentioned as starters.

Regarding active lineup choices, the Mavs' starting five remains fluid, and different combinations will be tested — including going big with McGee and Christian Wood alongside each other.  

“We’re going to look at different lineups and see what’s better for the team,” Kidd said after Monday’s practice. “The season is where you can get those answers.

“It’s one thing to have continuity, but also being able to have answered the question of can two bigs play together, can they start together, can you go with C-Wood at the five, start him at the five. So we’ll look at a couple of things.”

Kidd explained that having multiple ball handlers on the floor consistently will remain a priority with Doncic and Dinwiddie being a "pretty good combination." However, staggering the minutes of those two guards could be helpful to have Dinwiddie available to run the bench unit. 

“You look at Spencer starting there with Luka, and just Spencer being Spencer,” Kidd said. “You’re looking at being able to have two ball handlers out on the floor, and also I think those two playing together are a pretty good combination.

“And then being able to split those two so Spencer can come back and run that second group.”

When discussing the second unit, Kidd included names like Josh Green, Frank Ntilikina, and Jaden Hardy as potential options. The team believes the talent of their frontcourt with being able to handle the ball can help make that group thrive.

“With the (second) group we have, Josh (Green) has gotten better, Frank (Ntilikina) is stable, and you look at (rookie Jaden) Hardy,” Kidd said. “But you look at our bigs can handle too, when you talk about Dorian being able to bring it.

“We encouraged him last year to bring it. We’re going to do the same thing this year.”

Kidd specifically highlighted Christian Wood as being a talented center option that can grab-and-go in transition after hauling in a defensive rebound — comparing that ability to that of Anthony Davis. 

“C-Wood can bring (the ball up the floor),” Kidd said. “He has that AD affect where he can rebound and kind of start the offense, so we have a lot of options with ball handling.

“So, we’ll look at them all and hopefully someone is going to jump up and take that position.”

There isn't much time for the Mavs to utilize external NBA preseason competition to build a sample size before making determinations given they have just one game left before the regular season. Their final preseason matchup occurs on Friday against the Utah Jazz.

With only three preseason games this season, the Mavs have appreciated the opportunity to practice more than they'd usual. Given the importance of the Golden State Warriors' continuity and community in the Western Conference Finals, building more of their own is a priority. 

“You don’t get to practice a lot in this league,” Kidd said. “So, to have the opportunity to practice for a whole week — which we will never have again — is big in our eyes and it hopefully gives us the advantage.

“We’re just continuing to work on the plan. We’re not going to skip any steps. If the group doesn’t get something, we’ll stay there until they can digest it.”The Mavs will scrimmage on Wednesday 

The Mavs will open the NBA regular season on Wednesday, Oct. 19, when they take on the Phoenix Suns at the Footprint Center.