Dinwiddie describes Mavs’ roster as ‘an embarrassment of riches’

 LAS VEGAS – When Dallas Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie looks around the basketball court at his teammates, what he sees is a bunch of talent stacked on top of a bunch of talent.

“It’s an embarrassment of riches,” Dinwiddie said following Friday’s practice on the campus of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

“You’ve got an MVP, (in Luka Dončić), you’ve got one of the great clutch performers in history (in Kyrie Irving), you’ve got a top two or three shooter in history (in Klay Thompson), depending on how you feel about Ray Allen, probably.

“You’ve got probably the best tandem big man lineup in terms of lob threat and rim protection in the league (in Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford). Then you bring in Naji Marshall, one of the best perimeter defenders in the league. It’s interesting, because he can’t guard me.”

Dinwiddie , who signed a one-year, $3.3 million free agent contract with the Mavs on Aug. 3, laughed after making that statement. But, now in his 11^th season, he was joking about the amount of quality talent Mavs coach Jason Kidd has at his disposal.

And all of this is coming from a player who played last season with a Los Angles Laker squad that featured LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

“It’s funny because I actually said when I got to the Lakers last year that that was the most talented team I’ve ever been on,” Dinwiddie said. “We had two Hall of Fame guys (in James and Davis).

Dinwiddie was on the Brooklyn Nets’ squad that includes Kevin Durant, James Harden and Irving. But he said: “I didn’t really play with the James, Kai and KD group because I was hurt at that time, so I kind of had that as an asterisk.

“But it’s hard for us to say that this ain’t the most talented team I’ve been on. It’s right there.”

Dinwiddie certainly got no argument from Kidd, whose job it is to put the right pieces on the court while keeping everybody happy.

“I think with the depth that we have, (we have) to be able to maximize that,” Kidd said. “If not just from injuries, but also being able to keep guys fresh for the marathon, and that’s what we’re looking at with some guys out right now.”

THOMPSON HAS SOMETHING TO PROVE: The fact that Klay Thompson has something to prove should work to the Mavs’ advantage.

Thompson played the first 13 years of his career with Golden State while helping the Warriors win four NBA championship. But he felt slighted this past summer when the Warriors didn’t at least offer him the same four-year, $100 million contract that gave Warriors forward Draymond Green in the summer of 2023.

Thus, after a season that saw Thompson average 17.9 points and shoot 38.7 percent from three-point range, the Mavs are hoping for even more.

“He does have a lot to prove and I think you can see that,” coach Jason Kidd said. “One, he is hungry.

“Getting to see him on a daily basis, you can see his work ethic, his preparations and being prepared. He comes to work every day, and he has fun doing it. But also, I think he is a role model for our young guys – to be able to be prepared, get your work in, and try to do the things that the coaches are asking you to do.”

Kidd noticed that Thompson is a self-starter who wants to get in as many reps as possible.

“I think with Klay, the one thing that stands out is his leadership, his work ethic,” Kidd said. “He doesn’t take any reps off. When someone has played in this league the years that he’s played, sometimes it’s hard to make that adjustment on the system.

“A lot of times you say, ‘I’m just going to do it the way I’ve been doing it.’ But he’s bought into what we’re trying to do on both ends of the floor.”

WASHINGTON’S HIGH GOALS: Making the NBA all-defensive team and shooting at least 40 percent from three-point range are individual goals forward P. J. Washington has set for himself this season.

“I think those are all realistic goals for him that he can control,” Kidd said. “When you look at the defense, he’s going to compete against the best offensive player.

“You look at the shooting — 40 percent or higher — he can control that. He’ll have a lot of open shots. He’s put in the work, (and) his confidence and trust is something that he will continue to grow with and get better with.”

In 29 games for the Mavs last season, Washington averaged 11.7 points and 6.2 rebounds and shot 31.4 percent from beyond the three-point arc. And in 22 playoff games for the Mavs last season he averaged 13 points and 6.6 rebounds and converted 34.8 percent of his three-pointers.

“I think for PJ it’s just continuing to build on what he’s been doing,” Kidd said. “You look at what he did for us last year shooting the ball, (and) defensively, being able to play in the post.

“The next step is for him to be able to bring the ball (up the floor). Get the rebound and don’t always look for Luka (Doncic) or (Kyrie Irving). We trust that he can play-make, too.”

BRIEFLY: Mavs guard Dante Exum has suffered an injury to his right wrist. The Mavs said Exum will continue to be evaluated with updates provided as appropriate. Exum joins Luka Dončić (left calf contusion), Maxi Kleber (sprained ankle) and Kessler Edwards (sprained ankles) as players who have been on the mend during training camp . . . The Mavs finished their four-day training camp on Friday and will fly home on Saturday. “I thought it was a great week,” coach Jason Kidd said. “We got a lot of stuff in and we’re excited. The energy was high. A lot of competition, so we’ll go back home and start back up on Sunday.” The Mavs will have their Fam Jam open practice on Sunday at noon at American Airlines Center. The doors for that event will open at 11:15 a.m. . .Just from a glance, guard Spencer Dinwiddie believes the NBA is more talented than it has ever been with several teams having a legitimate shot at winning this season NBA title. “I think we’re better than the previous generation, and the previous generation is better than the one before them,” Dinwiddie said. “And the next generation will be better than us. It follows human evolution. It shouldn’t be any beef between generations. Obviously, we’re more talented and more deep than at any point in history, and the next generation will be better than us. That’s kind of how life goes.” . . . Center Daniel Gafford and forward P. J. Washington were solid last year after joining the Mavs in separate trade deadline day trades. But with both players going through their first training camp with the Mavs, coach Jason Kidd anticipates them being even better. “I thought last year the adjustments in getting their feet settled quickly was big for us,” Kidd said. “But I think also having training camp, understanding the system on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball is really going to be better for us but greater for them because they’re comfortable with the system and what we’re asking them to do.” . . . Mavs players Luka Dončić and Dereck Lively II, coach Jason Kidd and general manager Nico Harrison sat courtside and were put on the Jumbotron during Friday’s Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals between the Las Vegas Aces and New York Liberty.

X: @DwainPrice