As they begin to fill out their roster for the 2019-20 season, the Mavericks know one thing for sure:
They will have plenty of proven depth in the front court – players that not only have produced in the past but know the Mavericks’ system like the back of their hand.
Maxi Kleber and Dorian Finney-Smith, once thought of as young projects, have developed into solid veterans who have performed capably in their Maverick careers. Both have started and both have come off the bench at various points in their still-young careers.
Kleber, 6-11, will be entering his third season and has shown that he has all the qualities to be a stretch-four and emergency center. He averaged 6.8 points and 4.6 rebounds last season, both upgrades over his rookie season.
Most importantly, his 3-point shooting increased to a very respectable 35.3 percent. And he emerged as a good shot-blocker on the defensive end.
For that reason, the Mavericks rewarded Kleber with a multiyear contract this week. He figures to be part of the big-man rotation with Dwight Powell, along with Kristaps Porzingis and Boban Marjanovic, both of whom have agreed to terms but whose signings are not yet official.
Finney-Smith, meanwhile, has been the Mavericks’ best wing defender and he also is capable of guarding bigger players. Heading into his fourth season, the 6-8 swingman has increased his scoring and rebounding averages each season. And he almost always gets the most difficult defensive assignment.
He’s still not a great shooter (31.1 percent from 3-point range last season). But he is one of the best offensive rebounders on the team per minute played.
Finney-Smith went undrafted in 2016. But of the 60 players who were taken in the two-round draft, only 21 have a higher scoring average for their three-year careers than Finney-Smith’s 5.9 points per game. Only 16 are averaging more than his 3.7 rebounds per game.
Clearly if there was a mulligan for that draft, many teams would rethink the value of Finney-Smith.
The combo of Kleber and Finney-Smith, along with Powell, gives the Mavericks three big men who can rotate in and out and give the Mavericks different looks against different matchups. And of course, Kristaps and Marjanovic both are 7-3 and should help with the perpetual rebounding problems the Mavericks have had the last few seasons.
The fact that Kleber and Finney-Smith are signing multiyear deals is a sign of just how strong the Mavericks’ player-development program is. With a legion of strong teachers on coach Rick Carlisle’s staff, the team has molded young and largely undrafted players like Kleber and Finney-Smith into legitimate NBA rotation players.
The key to that is to have both coaches and players who are willing to put in the work.
Going back to players like Salah Mejri, Jae Crowder and even as far back as J.J. Barea, the Mavericks have struck a lot of gold with players who were either taken in the second round or undrafted.
Kleber and Finney-Smith — and Powell, who signed a long-term extension last week — are proof that getting the most out of one’s talents usually gets rewarded in the Mavericks’ organization.
Twitter: @ESefko
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