The Dallas Mavericks are making the play-in tournament against all odds. While many believed that the Luka Doncic– and Kyrie Irving-less Mavs would slide out of playoff contention, the Mavs managed to secure their ticket to the play-in tournament with one game to spare.
Anthony Davis played a huge part in securing the Mavs’ postseason hopes. The big man has been a reliable centerpiece to the Dallas playbook whenever he’s available, with his triple-double outing against the Toronto Raptors proving his value to the squad.
However, making the play-in tournament isn’t the only hope Nico Harrison had when making the bombastic trade to send their superstar to the Purple and Gold. The question in everyone’s heads is how the Mavs can manage to make an unlikely postseason run when one of their premier shot creators is still bouncing back from a torn ACL.
One analyst makes a daring suggestion, and the player he thinks can help the Mavs make a deep playoff run is a name that may surprise non-Mavs fans.
Analyst believes Brandon Williams will push the Dallas Mavericks to a postseason run
The Smoking Cuban’s Will Miller understands that the Mavs will have a tough time without Irving on the roster. Having a dynamic scorer who can twist defenders around with his dribbling helps during the most important minutes of the season.
However, he believes Brandon Williams can contribute to an unlikely deep run in the playoffs if Jason Kidd manages to use him well enough.
The second-year player out of Arizona saw an uptick in minutes since Kyrie Irving was declared out for the season. The undersized guard is averaging 16.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 4.4 assists through the 12 games he played this season.
However, Miller finds the most value out of Williams for the Mavs’ postseason hopes from a defensive standpoint:
Despite being roughly 6-foot-2, Williams doesn’t back down from any challenge from a defensive standpoint and uses his wiry frame and quickness to supplement for his lack of height, almost in a similar sense but not quite to the elite level that Irving has proven with his defensive IQ at times. Williams hustles for rebounds and loose balls consistently, and while not as much of a midrange maestro as Irving, many of his offensive tendencies reflect the potential tutelage/influence of Irving as well.
Such values are critical in a tight playoff series where teams will come up with specific game plans to stop whatever plays helped the Mavs make the play-in tournament. One rebound or desperate run for the ball can be the difference between lifting the Larry O’Brien trophy and going home empty, and Williams can be that defensive spark they badly need.
It will be almost impossible for the Mavericks to replicate Irving’s gravitas and scoring knack. However, Williams can help build a solid foundation to help Kidd remain competitive in a cramped Western Conference.
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