Veteran Praises Mavs As 'Most Talented Team' He's Been On

The roster has improved quickly in the time he was gone, but the veteran guard is happy to be back in Dallas

Sep 30, 2024; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie (26) poses for a photo during the 2024 Dallas Mavericks media day. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Spencer Dinwiddie was only gone from the Dallas Mavericks for a little over a year. They traded him away to bring in Kyrie Irving, but he has found his way back by signing with the Mavs on a one-year deal. When he was gone, the Mavericks seriously upgraded the roster.

The starting lineup in Dinwiddie's last game in Dallas before the trade was Dinwiddie, Josh Green, Tim Hardaway Jr., Dorian Finney-Smith, and Dwight Powell, as Luka Doncic was unavailable with an injury. Powell is the only player who has remained in Dallas from that lineup, and he's nothing more than a veteran locker-room presence at this point. Now, the Mavs are projected to start Doncic, Irving, Klay Thompson, P.J. Washington, and Dereck Lively II, with Daniel Gafford, Naji Marshall, Quentin Grimes, and more as bench help.

Dinwiddie loves the talent of this year's Mavericks, saying it's hard to not call it the most talented team he's ever been on after practice this week.

READ MORE: Key Maverick Reserve Suffers 'Serious' Injury

"It’s hard-pressed to say that this ain’t the most talented team I’ve been on," Dinwiddie started. "You got a MVP [Doncic], you got one of the great clutch performers in history [Irving], you got a top 2 or 3 shooter in history [Thompson]… You got probably the best tandem big man lineup in terms of lob threat and rim protection in the league [Lively and Gafford]… Apparently, Synergy says that Naji Marshall is one of the best perimeter defenders in the league... I was even telling Dennis Smith Jr., because I played with him last year, when I got here I was like ‘Yo, your boy PJ, he way nicer than I expected.’… It’s dope to see.”

The Mavericks have sustained a few injuries already in the preseason, as Luka Doncic is missing some time with a calf contusion, and Dante Exum has a "serious" wrist injury that may require surgery, but the Mavs have the depth to sustain some hits to their roster here and there.

Following their run to the NBA Finals last year, it would have been perfectly understandable for the Mavericks not to make any major changes to the roster, but they found opportunities to get better and made those changes. They feel like this roster is good enough for Doncic not to be as relied upon as he's been in years past, and he can save his legs for the playoffs if needed.

READ MORE: ESPN Analyst Impressed by Mavericks Offseason After NBA Finals

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