Mavs' Dereck Lively II Strives to Become 'Dominant Force' in NBA

Both the Mavericks and Dereck Lively II have aspirations of the rookie big man one day becoming a force to be reckoned with.

Michael Mulford | Jul 9, 2023

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Dallas Mavericks

In last month's NBA Draft, the Dallas Mavericks made it a focus to target their big man of the future in Duke center Dereck Lively II.

In his first NBA action during Saturday's Summer League opener, Lively finished with four points, five rebounds, and one steal in just 16 minutes of play as the Mavs fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder, 91-80.

Following the loss, Lively sat down with ESPN's Jorge Sedano for an interview to discuss his excitement playing with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving along with what his goals are for his NBA career.

"I just want to be the most coachable player on the floor," Lively said. "Being able to just learn something from each game."

In their introductory press conference, both Lively and fellow rookie O-Max Prosper were both as humble as they could’ve been, speaking with such maturity about wanting to be a sponge and learn all they can to help Dallas win basketball games.

But despite being humble doesn’t mean confidence can’t be at an all-time high as well, as Lively stated that he wants to become a 'dominant force' in the league.

"Thinking about accomplishments, I want to be able to be All-Rookie, all that," Lively said. "I just want to be able to be a dominant force, no matter if that's on the defensive end or offensive end."

Lively has a long way to go to become a force in this league, but the rookie big man is ready to put in the work to reach his goal of being a name that opponents circle on their calendar as a marquee matchup.

"I want people to know that when they wake up in the morning, they gotta play Dereck Lively," Lively said. "That's what I want it to be."

Talk that talk, D-Live. That’s the kind of attitude the Mavs need from their big-man position going forward.

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Published Jul 9, 2023

MICHAEL MULFORD

Michael Mulford is a writer/editor for Dallas Basketball, where he extensively covers the Dallas Mavericks. He also covers the Chicago Bulls as the Managing Editor for Bulls Wire of USA Today Sports Media Group. Mulford grew up in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and graduated from the University of North Texas in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in Recreation, Event, and Sports Management. He began his pursuit of sports writing in 2017 with Dallas Sports Fanatic, where he covered the Mavericks’ G League affiliate, Texas Legends. He then became the Managing Editor of Dallas Sports Fanatic just one year later and has covered the Mavericks as a credentialed media member since 2018, including covering numerous playoff games between 2021-22 and covering the team at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas in 2019. In his time covering the Mavericks, Mulford has conducted numerous interviews for exclusive stories including with Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki, former Maverick and current VP of Basketball Ops Michael Finley, former Mavericks GM Donnie Nelson, and more. You can follow and interact with Mulford on Twitter at @TheMulf.