Can ‘Bubble Struggle’ Mavs Find Rhythm On 3-Point Shooting?
All teams go through shooting slumps from time to time, but what the Dallas Mavericks are currently going through in Orlando feels more like a ‘total collapse’ than just your average ‘slump.’
Even the Mavs’ only win over the last four games was an uphill climb, as they shot just 37-percent overall and 22-percent in an overtime victory over the Sacramento Kings. Before that win, the Mavs had lost 49 straight games when shooting under 40 percent from the field.
READ MORE: Luka is 'Kareem-Like' In Win Over Kings
Three-point shooting specifically, though, is the main issue for the league’s best offense. And it’s not just one Maverick either, unfortunately. It’s nearly all of them.
Said coach Rick Carlisle after Friday's workout: "We did a lot of shooting today in practice. ... We've certainly got to take it very seriously, what's happening.''
As good as Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis have been overall, it hasn’t been enough to make up for the entire roster struggling from deep. Here’s how the Mavs’ main players have shot threes in the bubble compared to how they were shooting them in the regular season before the hiatus:
| Player | Season 3-Point % | ‘Bubble’ 3-Point % |
|---|---|---|
Luka Doncic | 32% | 29% |
Kristaps Porzingis | 35% | 30% |
Tim Hardaway Jr. | 40% | 30% |
Seth Curry | 45% | 33% |
Maxi Kleber | 37% | 29% |
Dorian Finney-Smith | 37% | 30% |
After looking at that, it’s kind of amazing that they’re not 0-4 in ‘Bubble’ play with multiple blowout losses.
Think back to what coach Rick Carlisle said at bubble's start about what the Mavs needed to work on.
“I don’t see anything big in terms of schematic changes,” Carlisle said. “But I do think we need to get better in a couple of areas. I think defensively, we have a chance to really improve. That’s an area where we were in the 20s in defense at the beginning of the year. Now, we’re around 14 or 15, I think. The top 10 is a goal of ours. We would like to get there.”
Defense. And free-throwing. Perimeter shooting was not on that list.
On the flip side, though, as bad as the three-point shooting has been, perhaps an upswing will come at the perfect time for the Mavs, getting them back in a collective rhythm before the postseason begins.
Even if the shooting comes back around to where it was in March, the Mavs still have glaring defensive issues that could keep them from potentially advancing in a playoff series, especially if against three-time champion Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers.
READ MORE: Mavs - At A 'Physical Disadvantage' - Lose To Clippers
However, those issues didn’t keep the Mavs from going 40-27 through 67 games before the season was suspended. More times than not, Dallas’ high-powered offense was able to push them over the top, even with Doncic missing 13 games and Porzingis missing 16 games.
Among all the flaws this current Mavs roster has, three-point shooting is the unexpected blemish that has hurt them the most so far in Orlando. It’s hard to believe that all of them just forgot how to shoot after four months of not playing, so we’re going to chalk this up as a temporary issue. We’ll take the 67-game regular season sample size as the better evidence over the current four-game Orlando sample size.
In terms of shot analytics, Carlisle said. "We've been 'unlucky' the last couple games. ... When that happens, you've got to balance it out with more aggression. ... low turnovers and get to the line a lot.''
The Mavs now have four more seeding games to try to establish their rhythm again, starting with the Milwaukee Bucks and reigning league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo on Saturday night. Seth Curry - one of the cures to shooting woes - continues to be a question-mark helper; he's listed as doubtful for the weekend. (Dorian Finney-Smith is also now listed at questionable.)
There are other ways beyond long-range bombing to win, of course.
“That’s pretty much what we’ve been saying,” Finney-Smith said. “We’re not going to make shots every night. But we can control our energy.''
Meanwhile, fixing their game from the arc might not be enough to take down the Bucks, the locked-in best team in the East. But this supposed strength must cease in being a weakness ... or else.
