DALLAS — Have the Dallas Mavericks unlocked their potential in time to prime themselves for a deep playoff run?
A recent stretch of winning certainly has them in a better position. But before they can prove themselves in the playoffs, they’ll be aiming to continue their current five-game winning streak, which has given them a fighting chance to win the Western Conference’s Southwest division.
Winners of nine of their last 10 games, Dallas will play the second leg of its consecutive contests against the Sacramento Kings on Friday night. A victory in the first leg of two straight in the capital of California has elevated the Mavs to sixth place in the West, a tenuous half-game up on the seventh-place Phoenix Suns.
With growing confidence and a newfound identity thanks to an improved defensive presence and interior production to go along with a star-studded backcourt, Dallas is beginning to look like a fully-formed roster that teams will want to avoid in the playoff seeding.
The Mavs will have to get their first, however.
This hot streak has been a stark contrast to some of their earlier foibles where the team relied on inconsistent and streaky three-point barrages. In its place, Dallas has adopted the personality of a team that can beat you down in the paint -- if you want to sell out to stop Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, that is -- on both sides of the court.
The best part for Dallas is that they didn’t have to sacrifice their superstars' effectiveness to adapt to this new style. Having a functioning frontcourt has only accentuated the games of Luka and Kyrie.
Doncic in particular is averaging 31.8 points, 10.2 assists, and 10.1 rebounds in March, with Irving pouring in an additional 23 points per game.
Throughout March, the combined efforts of Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II has netted the Mavs 21.1 points and 12.3 rebounds per game from the center position -- more than doubling the production seen from the position’s two highest-minutes players from just a year ago when Dallas bombed out of playoff contention to land in the lottery and selected Lively.
While the offensive outbursts like Gafford’s 24-point contest against the Utah Jazz last Friday certainly help, the mere presence of a Gafford or Lively as a rim-finisher has opened up Luka and Kyrie to pick apart opposing defenses at will.
The impact seen on the defensive side has already made the mid-season trades for Gafford and forward P.J. Washington a success, and the dividends could be huge if Dallas finds another gear during their playoff push. The Mavs shutting down the Kings' offensive star center Domantas Sabonis in their 132-96 blowout win on Tuesday night was mostly thanks to Gafford and Washington’s efforts, along with Lively pitching in.
To really feel how far Dallas has come in just a calendar year, one need only look to the opposing bench on Tuesday.
The Mavs' 2022-2023 center solution JaVale McGee played five minutes for Sacramento while the Lively/Gafford combo cooked the Kings on the court and suffocated their offensive playmakers.
The battle royale that is the Nos. 5 through 10 spots in the West will make for great drama in the season’s final two weeks, as Dallas is breathing down the necks of New Orleans for the division lead while also fighting off Phoenix and Sacramento to earn a guaranteed playoff spot.
Dallas will again be tested by Sabonis and De’Aaron Fox in their Friday night rematch in Sacramento. Afterward, the Mavericks will travel to Houston on Sunday to take on the Rockets, who have won 10 consecutive games to put themselves back in contention for the play-in tournament.
There is still time for a ton of movement in the standings, and games against Southwest rivals are still on Dallas’ schedule. But with only 10 games left in the regular season, the recent surge by the Mavs has them looking like a true playoff contender.
Even better? A 50-win season is a realistic goal for the first time for the Mavericks since the franchise's 2021-2022 season that saw the team reach the Western Conference Finals.
Do you think the Mavericks will reach the 50-win mark? Share your thoughts with Irvin on Twitter @Twittirv.