DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks were defeated by the Houston Rockets by a final score of 108-102 on Thursday night. The game did not go according to plan for Dallas, as the Mavs fell to 3-2 with the loss. Before the game, though, Mavs head coach Jason Kidd revealed an important roster update. Kidd said Dereck Lively II could be the Mavericks sixth man.
“We would love to have Jason Terry or that type of player,” Kidd said. “It makes it easy because that role is filled. We’re trying to define roles, we’re trying to get guys comfortable in their role. We’ve had different looks, we’re going to continue to have different looks as we go through this journey to see who is comfortable in that role. One of the guys that, you know, he might be a little bit taller than Jason Terry, might not shoot the three at a high clip, but D-Live could be looked upon as that sixth man.”
Kidd acknowledged that it would not be a traditional sixth man. Lively and Gafford consistently substitute in and out for one another throughout the game. Still, if Lively starts the game on the bench, then he could be the Mavericks sixth man.
“And it’s a different role because the bigs just flip-flop with the six minutes, but when you look at what D-Live is doing for us, both offensively and defensively, he could be Jason Terry in a different light,” Kidd continued. “When you talk about the guards, that shows our depth. It shows that we can go in different directions. We’re all fighting to be consistent and if we can get one of those three to be consistent then we can move forward and look at the next role.”
Dereck Lively II-Daniel Gafford form Mavericks’ center duo
Lively and Gafford have emerged as one of the best center duos in the NBA. Opposing defenses have to focus on Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson, so having to try to contain Lively and Gafford as well is a nightmare.
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“The threat is the two guys that are usually handling the ball,” Rockets head coach Ime Udoka said before Thursday’s game. “Obviously they like to slip out and get behind the defense. Because you have to respect Irving and Doncic so much… You want to bring that big up… but knowing that the lob threat is there, so it’s a perfect complement for them and what they do. Two guys that can make those passes. It’s a perfect storm.”
Lively and Gafford combined for only 12 points and six rebounds against the Rockets. In fact, most of the offense struggled with the Mavericks stars, as Luka Doncic finished with 29 points while Kyrie Irving had 28 points to go along with seven assists and eight rebounds.
The Mavericks will need more from Gafford and Lively moving forward.