2025 Dallas Mavericks Preseason Preview
Last year the Dallas Mavericks finished with a regular season record of 50 wins and 32 losses before losing to the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals. The Mavericks look to see if their off season moves are enough to get back to the finals and win it all this season.
(AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Leading the way for the Mavericks is Luka Dončić, who achieved a career high 33.9 points per games last season, leading the NBA in that category. The point guard entering his 7th season played 70 games last year, the most since his rookie year, but missed time in the preseason with a calf injury. The top heavy Dallas roster will rely on the continued good health of Luka to achieve a top playoff seed in the West.
Helping Dončić in this endeavor will be Kyrie Irving who played his first full season in Dallas after he and Dončić failed to establish chemistry and missed the NBA Playoffs the previous year. Time appeared to solve this issue as the formed NBA champion scored an efficient 25.6 points per game on volume last year. Joining Dallas’s cause and bringing championship experience of his own this year is Klay Thompson.
After playing 11 years with the Golden State Warriors (and missing two to injury) Klay will join the second team of his already storied career. Thompson scored 17.9 points per game last season, seeing a reduction in his role in the Bay Area as he took 14.7 shot attempts per game, his lowest volume since his second year in the league. Though his 3 point percentage last season was low for his personal standard, Thompson’s .387 3P% shows he can still be an elite shooter at volume. It will be interesting to see what his role will be on this team and how many opportunities he will see on a roster with a number of players who want to shoot the ball.
Derick Lively II was a standout player for the Mavs in his rookie season last year, and the center can be expected to make a second year leap, a crucial part of Dallas’s future success as they look to retain a competitive roster around Dončić.
