Dallas Mavericks Midseason Report Card

The Dallas Mavericks have officially hit the halfway point of the season, sitting at 22-19 through 41 games. They've been struggling without Luka Doncic, who has been out since Christmas Day with a calf strain, as they have lost nine of their last 12 games and slid from 3rd to 7th in the Western Conference. Kyrie Irving missing some games as well hasn't helped, but the Mavs are in need of some wins here soon.

With it being halfway through the season, let's hand out some mid-season report cards to each player. These will be in alphabetical order if you're looking to skip to certain players. Grades will given out relative to expectations and two-way players will not be represented.

Spencer Dinwiddie, C+

Dinwiddie has played more than anyone expected due to injuries to Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, and he's been sporadic. He's had a few big games, like 21 points and nine assists against the New York Knicks, but he's also had a few stinkers where he's shot the Mavs out of games. As a 3rd/4th guard, he's fine, though Dallas probably wishes he wasn't playing as much as he has been.

Luka Doncic, INC.

Doncic has missed nearly half the season, playing in 22 of the team's 41 games thus far. He got off to a slow start but had been playing his best basketball before going down on Christmas Day with a calf strain, which will keep him out until close to the All-Star break. He came into the season with MVP expectations, which likely would've had his grade around a B+/A- had I given him one, but he's just missed too many games to this point.

Dante Exum, INC.

Exum has yet to play in a game after having surgery on his wrist in the preseason. He could be returning soon, and they need some extra ball-handling as Doncic and Kyrie Irving deal with injuries.

Daniel Gafford, D+

If you just look at Daniel Gafford's base stats of 11.7 PPG and 6.0 RPG, you could make an argument that he's been solid. The eye test doesn't back that up at all. Maybe this is showing recency bias, but he was outplayed by DeAndre Jordan against the Denver Nuggets, and that's hard to ignore. He hasn't been nearly as impactful as he was last season, and it may lead to an uncomfortable decision to make for Dallas' front office.

Quentin Grimes, A-

Grimes had an interesting start to the season, as it took him a few weeks to get on Jason Kidd's good side. But he's been pretty good since then, averaging 12.5 PPG while shooting 40% from three-point range since a DNP in the first few weeks against the Nuggets. He's been ever better as a spot starter when Doncic or Irving have missed games, and the Mavs will have an interesting decision to make with his contract over the summer. He's a big bench piece.

Jaden Hardy, B-

Hardy also had a slow start to the season but has been much better since returning from an ankle sprain a few weeks ago. He's still a little too sporadic at times, but he's become a nice little flamethrower off the bench. The real test will be if he can continue it once Doncic returns to the lineup.

Kyrie Irving, A-

Irving was spectacular to start the season as Doncic's second fiddle, but he wasn't able to lift the Mavs to many wins once Doncic went out on Christmas Day with a calf strain. He's still had some big performances, but a back injury has limited his effectiveness recently. Irving is an All-Star caliber player, but it would've been nice to convert some of those big scoring outputs into wins.

Maxi Kleber, F

Kleber has been bad. There's no other way to put it. Of the 11 Mavericks who have played an average of at least 11 MPG, he's the only one not scoring at least 8.0 PPG, as he's at just 2.8 PPG. He's shooting just 41.1% from the floor, 30.9% from three, and has a lower rebounding rate than Quentin Grimes. There's a reason any trade the Mavericks have been rumored in includes Kleber and his salary.

Dereck Lively II, B-

Lively hasn't taken the jump many expected him to make after a stellar rookie season, but was starting to turn the corner before hurting his ankle against the Nuggets on Tuesday. His scoring and rebounding haven't improved much, but he's made a lot of progress as a passer, including a career-high eight assists in Sunday's Nuggets matchup. But his fouling issues have been a major issue for the team this year, something he needs to figure out when he returns.

Naji Marshall, B+

Marshall has had a wild season, including suspension for fighting Jusuf Nurkic, an illness that kept him out for nearly two weeks, but also stretches of great basketball. He's been a much better scorer than many Dallas fans likely anticipated, but he also hasn't been as impactful of a defender as we expected.

Markieff Morris, INC

Morris has only played in five games as the team's veteran in the Udonis Haslem role. Without seeing every single locker room interaction for him, it's hard to give him a grade.

Dwight Powell, A

Powell has quietly played well in his limited minutes, doing just about all you could ask out of a 3rd/4th-string center. His numbers won't blow you away, but in less than eight minutes per game, he's done just about everything you need him to do.

Olivier-Maxence Prosper, B-

Prosper has provided great energy whenever he's been in the game, but playing time has been the biggest issue. Jason Kidd really hasn't wanted to play Prosper for whatever reason. He still has a long way to go from being an impactful, every-game player, but his energy has been needed these last few weeks.

Klay Thompson, B

Thompson hasn't emerged as the third scorer that the Mavericks expected when they signed him, but he's still shooting 37.9% from three-point range and had been better when Doncic and Irving were in the lineup. The season hasn't gone as expected when he signed, but he still raises their ceiling when everyone is healthy.

P.J. Washington, B+

Washington's three-point shooting has taken a massive jump, and he's been an instrumental rebounder and defender. His offensive game still has another level it can reach, but he's unquestionably one of the best players on the team.

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