01-20-2026, 09:22 PM
(01-20-2026, 08:00 PM)mvossman Wrote: I'm not fond of AD centric offense, but I think this team has a (much) better winning percentage when AD plays. That is probably mostly due to his defense as his offensive numbers are significantly down from years past.
That was true early in the season. But I also think AD was more important to winning when there was a lot of bad PG play.
I think now it feels more like the Mavs can field a competitive team without him. That's not to say, of course, that the Mavs don't need upgrades at several positions. They need better shooting, better rebounding, better PG play, and better rim protection. But the last few games, they've looked active and well-coached. Christie is clearly shooting more and the team defense is adequate. I think we overlook some of this because we're focused on trades and an otherwise lost season.