Since the Celtics won the championship, many teams in the East have been working hard to strengthen the roster this summer, such as the 76ers have signed Paul George, Koreb Martin, Gordon, Zhuang Shen and others, and the strength on paper can already compete with the Celtics; The Knicks also traded Bridges to last season's regular season Eastern Conference second frame, and Thibodeau got another forward iron man. The West was very involuted last season, the Thunder won the first place in the West in the regular season, and the Timberwolves defense has always been a cliff-like leader in the league, but it was the Mavericks who finally stood out. On the one hand, the top teams in the West do have a restraint relationship with each other, such as the Mavericks who play the Thunder with shortcomings on the inside, such as the Nuggets' lack of combat power and being dragged down by the Timberwolves and so on.
Any team in the West that wants to reach the Finals may be several times more difficult than the East, and the crux of the problem is here. After the opening of the free market this summer, the Nuggets continued to lose their fighting power (Pope joined the Magic), the Thunder traded to get Caruso, and signed Harden for 87 million in 3 years, with a perfect lineup; The Clippers said goodbye to George, but also added Derrick Jones, Batum, Bamba and other giants, and the lineup was more balanced. As the Mavericks, who won the Western Conference last season, they are still the favorites to win the championship according to ESPN's prediction for the new season. But there is one question that is easy to ignore, signing Klay for $50 million in 3 years and letting go of Derrick Jones, is the roster upgraded or downgraded? In addition, Doncic's style of play is actually not the mainstream way to win championships in the NBA today.
Starting from the Mavericks' operation this summer, after the free market opened, they successfully cleared the burden of Hardaway Jr. in exchange for Grimes, and the free market successively signed Klay, Marshall and Dinwiddie, the key is that they let go of Derrick Jones Jr. It's also interesting to say, the Mavericks offered Derrick Jones a 3-year $27 million offer contract, and the Clippers offered Derrick Jones a 3-year, $30 million contract, but considering state taxes and other aspects, in fact, Derrick Jones didn't get much of a gap in the money, but in the end Jones chose the Clippers. For the Mavericks, Klay can't replace either Doncic or Irving, and Kidd has long said that the team will release Klay's greatest value, which is projection.
Let's start with a statistic, the Mavericks ranked first in the league in defense during the last 15 games of last season, and Derrick Jones's defensive victory contribution was firmly in the top two on the team! And in the playoffs, the Mavericks' defensive efficiency is second only to the Thunder they eliminated in the entire West, and Derrick Jones' personal defensive efficiency is 107.8, 23rd in the league in the playoffs, and second in the Mavericks team (second only to Lively)! To put it simply, the Mavericks' success from the trade deadline last season was based on the seamless connection of the two interior lines of Gafford + Lively, plus the defensive suppression of Derrick Jones, after all, Doncic, as the core of the ball, needs too many places for his teammates to help defend. Klay obviously can't replace Derrick Jones' defense, and on the offensive end, Klay doesn't have the right to hold the ball.
In addition, it is the shortcomings of Doncic's personal style of play. Next summer, Doncic locked in a five-year $346 million super cap salary in advance, and starting from the 26-27 season, Doncic's salary will be 59.71 million + 64.49 million + 69.27 million + 74.04 million + $78.82 million, which will refresh the five-year record of $315 million held by Tatum. However, Doncic's journey all the way last season, including the playoff style in the previous years, exposed obvious shortcomings: he likes to complain on the offensive end, and even sometimes gives up defense and chatters at the referee; It's hard to do your best on the defensive end, which is the biggest hole, and the proportion of three-round series that has been passed has set a new NBA record for nearly 10 years, these are all clichés. Key point: Doncic can't give up the ball, he can't play without the ball.
Playing a Western team, the Mavericks can rely on the Clippers' lack of small cards, the Thunder's ineffective interior line, and the Timberwolves' lack of a stable second scoring point, and finally break into the Finals, but when it comes to the Finals, Doncic is overly sandwiched, his mentality is easy to be unbalanced, and it is easy to force some unreasonable shots, resulting in his efficiency becoming extremely low. Moreover, the teams that have won the championship in recent years have all played team basketball, the Bucks are only the finisher, not to mention the Warriors and Curry, the Nuggets and the Celtics have relied on a strong overall success, but the Mavericks do not have this attribute.
Although the Mavericks created the Big Three of Doncic + Irving + Klay this summer, the defense is really not as good as last season, and it is unknown whether Klay can adapt to his new role. As for Doncic, his style of playing with a big core with the ball, the data is indeed very gorgeous, and it is easy to take it over, but when it comes to the high-end game, once it is targeted, there is no room for redemption. And if Doncic wants to succeed, he really has to start defense, he himself is the biggest defensive drag on the Mavericks, he is not yet 26 years old, but he plays like a 38-year-old veteran, which is not advisable.