The Mavericks Could Surprise Teams By Running This Duo Out Together

• The frontcourt for the Dallas Mavericks suffered a setback when they lost starting center Dwight Powell for the season after he ruptured his achilles tendon on January 21st. Since Powell’s injury, starting power forward Kristaps Porzingis has arguably played the best basketball of his career.

• Porzingis isn't even the tallest player on the Mavericks roster. That honor falls to 7’4" center Boban Marjanovic. Unlike Porzingis, Marjanovic does not receive consistent playing time, as he has averaged only 9.1 minutes per game this season. However, Marjanovic has played extremely well when he has received an opportunity to play.

• Despite limited time together on the court, coach Rick Carlisle should consider playing the Mavericks version of the “Twin Towers” together, as the duo has complementary skills. Porzingis is a perimeter-oriented player with only 31.0 percent of his shots come from within 10 feet and only 18.4 percent of his rebounds are of the offensive variety. By contrast, 74.4 percent of Marjanovic’s shots come from within 10 feet and 34.6 percent of his rebounds are offensive boards.

• The Mavericks are currently the seventh seed in the Western Conference and are a lock to make the playoffs. Dallas will resume their season against the Houston Rockets on July 31st. Dallas is +1800 to represent the West in the NBA Finals and are +5000 to win it all, per DraftKings Sportsbook.

A Frontcourt Unmatched In Size

The Dallas Mavericks will only go as far as second-year superstar Luka Doncic takes them. That’s not to say that the Mavericks don’t have other strengths. Starting power forward Kristaps Porzingis certainly became an asset as the season progressed. Dallas acquired the 7’3" Latvian in a trade with the New York Knicks back in January of 2019. While Porzingis’ career with the Mavericks got off to a rocky start, he has turned into a reliable secondary scoring option behind Doncic. In his last 19 games, Porzingis averaged 22.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game.

Center Boban Marjanovic is a far less heralded contributor to the Mavericks. While the 7’4" Serbian only receives an average of 9.1 minutes per game, Marjanovic has played solid whenever he has received playing time. In the nine games where he received more than 15 minutes of playing time, Marjanovic averaged 13.8 points and 9.7 rebounds per game. In fact, the center scored 31 points in the final NBA game before the season was suspended in March.

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Twin Towers Version 2.0

Porzingis and Marjanovic have not played very many minutes together. Marjanovic is not in the top-10 in terms of players with whom Porzingis has logged the most minutes together this season. However, coach Rick Carlisle should consider unleashing the “Twin Towers” on opponents. In a league that seems to be getting smaller and smaller, running a 7’3" power forward and 7’4" center on the court at the same time would make the Mavericks a unique threat for their competitors. After all, the Los Angeles Lakers have succeeded this season in playing Anthony Davis at the same time as Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee.

The Dallas big men also have complementary skills. While Porzingis is very tall, he is relatively light at 240 pounds and is a perimeter-oriented big man. Only 31.0 percent of Porzingis’ shots come from within 10 feet and only 18.4 percent of his rebounds are of the offensive variety. A whopping 44.6 percent of Porzingis’ field goal attempts have come from behind the three-point line.

By contrast, the 7’4" Marjanovic is a much more traditional big man. He weighs 290 pounds and rarely leaves the paint. A healthy 74.4 percent of Marjanovic’s shots come from within 10 feet and 34.6 percent of his rebounds are offensive boards. Marjanovic has only hit eight total three-pointers in his five-year career. He's a true old school big man.

What Porzingis and Marjanovic have in common is that they both maintain above-average player efficiency ratings. Both players also shoot over 75.0 percent from the free throw-line, which is critical for a team that will get many trips to the charity stripe thanks to the playmaking of Luka Doncic.

NBA Restart

The Mavericks will resume their season against the Houston Rockets on July 31st. The Mavericks are currently one-point underdogs, per DraftKings Sportsbook. While Dallas will make the playoffs, they still have an opportunity to claim a better seed in the Western Conference. The Mavericks are currently the seventh-seed in the West and trail the Rockets by 1.5 games. They're long shots to win a title inside the NBA bubble at +5000 (per DraftKings Sportsbook), but can anyone really be counted out this season? Dallas may have some tricks up their sleeves, and their big men represent their best chances in surprising their opponents.

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