Why Luka Doncic's Mavs Are Prioritizing Strong Starts
The Dallas Mavericks have managed to get off to hot starts in each of their initial two games to begin the 2022-23 season.
The Mavs have outscored their opponents by a 30-point margin in the first quarter of their two games, with Doncic averaging 17.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists in the opening period alone. No player is averaging more points in the opening period of games so far.
In the playoffs, there were some situations where the Mavs began games facing an early deficit and it proved costly. Doncic highlighted the first two games against the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference Semifinals as examples of problematic slow starts, both of which resulted in losses.
“I think it’s important to start good," Doncic said. "I think a couple games last year, especially in the playoffs in the first two games against the Suns, our start was not good. That’s why I want to improve that this year.”
Mavs coach Jason Kidd felt the tone was set by Doncic and his teammates in the first quarter by their focus in getting into the paint. Doing so frequently led to quality shot attempts. Additionally, there's been an emphasis on defense and generally executing on the boards.
"I thought it was carryover from the last game," Kidd said. "I thought the guys paid attention to the details that we talked about, learning from our mistakes in Phoenix. It happens in a season. This group, we talked about it. I thought Luka [Doncic] and those guys set the tone in the first quarter by the paint touches. We got good looks, make or miss. Defensively, we talked about rebounding the ball and I thought those guys set the tone there, too."
During the Mavs' playoff run, a frequent pattern occurred with Dwight Powell starting at center resulted in the opposing team being aggressive in loading up on Doncic within the half-court. That doesn't tend to be the case in the regular season with teams beginning games with neutral coverages.
The Mavs often experienced a boost in momentum offensively in their playoff run when they swapped out Powell in favor of a shooting threat like Maxi Kleber. In the regular season, teams tend to begin games with neutral ball screen coverages before adjusting if an opposing talent gets hot.
Based on the reliance of play-finishing opportunities created by Doncic's playmaking, there could be similar limitations with JaVale McGee starting as there were with Powell. However, the thought there was to add a big man with the physical tools to protect the rim and rebound at a higher level.
With Christian Wood having a more dynamic scoring ability than Kleber, the Mavs theoretically should be a more potent offensive team come playoff time. With more scoring firepower in their bench unit, the goal will be to sustain positive results even when Doncic goes to the sideline.
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