Can Mavs Fix Kristaps Porzingis’ Perimeter Shooting?

It has been a struggle for Dallas Mavericks star Kristaps Porzingis to convert from three-point range this season. What's going on with his execution?

A lack of consistent perimeter shooting has been a problem the Dallas Mavericks have faced often throughout the 2021-22 season. 

One player, in particular, whose perimeter shooting is vital to the Mavericks' success as a half-court offense is Kristaps Porzingis. He's now down to shooting just 27.2-percent from beyond the arc in 23 outings. 

Last season, Porzingis managed to shoot 37.6-percent from the perimeter on six attempts per game. His efficiency has plummeted and for a stretch-big, that begs the question—what's going on with his shooting? 

"Mid-range is feeling fine," Porzingis told reporters after the Mavericks' loss to the Utah Jazz on Christmas Day. "Today I missed some good mid-range looks too that I'm mad about. My three is not feeling good right now. 

On Christmas Day, Porzingis came up empty on all five of his attempts from deep, but finished with 27 points on 8-of-18 shooting from the field. He relied more on what he can do inside the three-point line to overcompensate. 

"The only answer I have now is to keep shooting at practice and working on it and get that feel back from deep," Porzingis said. 

"And that's it. Some nights when it's not there, I try to go to the post more, closer to the rim and use that to my advantage and use that part of my game."

Oftentimes, Porzingis is missing short on his three-point attempts. There are a few contributing factors that can cause such an outcome. Perhaps above all is the inconsistency in his follow-through. At times, he's almost pushing it at the rim as opposed to finishing up on the release to establish quality arc.

Other times, Porzingis is turning left or leaning backward too much at times to avoid a contest—preventing himself from finishing his shot process. When that occurs from multiple feet away from the three-point line, the issue is only exacerbated. 

One of the limits a team faces by having just a select few of high volume shooters from deep is that when one is injured or going through a slump, there isn't a clean way to overcompensate within that facet of the game. 

For the Mavericks, Doncic leads the team in three-point volume (8.3 attempts per game) and is sidelined. The only player attempting at least five shots from beyond the arc and shooting at least 34-percent is Dorian Finney-Smith, and even he is struggling to convert at his regular clip after shooting nearly 40-percent from deep over the last two seasons.

Porzingis being able to do other things offensively is nice to see, but going forward, for the Mavs to get where they want to be this season, and hopefully the postseason, he’ll need to find a way to start hitting three closer to his career average sooner than later.