Dallas Mavericks: Dereck Lively II's Playoff Run Continues to Dazzle

Despite an unfortunate injury for Dereck Lively II in which Karl Towns accidentally kneed him in the back of the head, the Mavericks rookie center still made his impact before his night was cut short in Game 3.

Though the Mavericks wrapped up the third game of the Western Conference Finals, taking a commanding three-to-nothing lead in the series over the Minnesota Timberwolves, Lively II was injured in the second quarter, and the energy in the building shifted upon the play and lost air with his lacking presence.

Despite the loss of the rookie, the Mavericks' Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving took over at the end of the game, and Lively II's minutes were replaced admirably by center Daniel Gafford, Dallas' midseason acquisition from the Washington Wizards.

As good as Lively II was during the regular season, finishing First Team All-Rookie, the former Duke Blue Devil has turned it up yet another notch in these 2024 NBA Playoffs, specifically in these last five games.

Before going down on Sunday night, he had, over the previous three games, put up plus/minus numbers of +19, +26, and +22, all of which were wins for the Mavericks. He's put up one of the best-ever plus-minus averages for a rookie in the history of the NBA so far this year, behind just Manu Ginobili of the Spurs in his first season.

Though the numbers aren't insane from a scoring standpoint, that's not Lively II's duty –– what he is asked to do, he does very well. He's not simply a shot blocker; he is an overall elite rim protector, a guy that has in many cases this postseason singlehandedly destroyed opposing offenses.

He's having as impressive a season for a first-year big as nearly any before on the defensive end, drawing comparisons to the impacts made by legends like Tim Duncan and David Robinson in their rookie seasons.

This Mavericks team is simply not in the same position without Lively II as they are when he is on the floor. It affects their defense obviously, but it's important to note that Lively II is one of the best screeners in the entire NBA, so he plays a big part of their offense as well.

His ability to grab the lob off of the screen and roll makes him one of the most valuable offensive centers in the league despite his lacking versatility on that end. He is such an important play-finisher that his absence slowed down Dallas' offense for about 10 minutes of game time.

The fact that he's just 20 years old yet displaying the maturity of a player 10 years more senior on and off the court is only one of the benefits of having Dereck Lively II on the Mavericks.

Upon this morning, he is apparently "OK" from his injury, though is still questionable for Game 4.

Want to join the discussion? Like Draft Digest on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest NBA Draft news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.