Dallas Mavericks Players Losing/Winning Minutes with Their Preseason Performance

For the Dallas Mavericks this preseason is one to watch...and watch very closely. Many NBA teams use the preseason as a way to ramp back up into basketball mode after a long offseason. Players, coaches and staffers all need to get back in the groove and the preseason is a nice warmup.

But for Dallas, this preseason will be much more than that. The Mavs have only eight returners from a roster that currently features 20 players. Not only does the team have to trim that number down to at least 15, but all these new pieces have to mesh before the season kicks off.

To further complicate matters, that the Mavericks are shopping Gal Mekel and Bernard James in an effort to give the team roster flexibility, as reported by Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.

Let’s just say this, it’s not your average October for the Mavs.

And of course, games are going on. Players are finding their roles, getting accustomed to their surroundings. Some are finding a fit right away, and that might mean more minutes when the real games roll around. Then again, others are still sorting themselves out, and might miss out on minutes in the regular season.

With so much turnover, almost every position is up for grabs. Time to see whose stock is rising and falling in Mavericks Land.

Winning Minutes—Al Farouq-Aminu

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Al-Farouq Aminu’s signing this summer really stuck out. Once his acquisition was official, Aminu became the Mavericks’ only rotation perimeter player who can’t shoot.

Coming into the league in 2010, that was the big knock on Aminu and that facet of his game hasn’t really improved.

But what he lacks in an outside stroke, he makes up for in, well, everything else.

So far in this preseason Aminu has dominated the stat sheet. He ranks in the top five on the team in total rebounds, offensive rebounds, blocks and steals. He’s only shooting 36.1 percent from the floor, but his 8.5 points per game rank sixth on the team and he’s hitting free throws at an 88.2 percent clip.

And he’s also playing with energy. Outside of his shooting woes, his game looks good, and he’s doing what the Mavs ask of him. He brings a lot to the table, which is essential given his deficiencies.

Aminu was a very cheap addition given that he was signed to the minimum and was brought in as a kind of experiment. Maybe he can be a mismatch on some nights, be a monkey wrench for opponents to be aware of.

So far so good on that front, and it seems he’s solidified a place in the rotation.

Losing Minutes—Gal Mekel

Jim Cowsert/Associated Press

There’s a lense under which Gal Mekel must be looked at.

He’s a 26-year-old player heading into his second NBA season, and he didn’t play much in his rookie campaign. Then of course there’s the previously mentioned report of him being shopped around, and it makes sense that he’s seeing more action than rotation players like Brandan Wright and Richard Jefferson.

That being said, Mekel has shown some skills. He’s shooting 53.6 percent from the field and a blistering 57.1 percent from three. He also put up 19 points and nine assists in a game against the Indiana Pacers over the weekend.

But Mekel’s main skill is distributing the basketball. He’s not an elite athlete nor is he especially big, and normally he’s not a fantastic shooter. He has difficulty getting to the rim, but he compensates somewhat by seeing the court well and being a solid passer.

For a guy who should be relying on that, his assist to turnover ratio of 2-to-1 won’t get it done.

The Mavs are overloaded at guard with Jameer Nelson, Devin Harris and Raymond Felton. Mekel would have been very lucky to see meaningful minutes, and his play thus far hasn’t prompted anyone to call for him to crack the rotation.

Either he gets traded or ends up spending another season down at the end of the bench.

Winning Minutes—Jameer Nelson

Jim Cowsert/Associated Press

Heading into the preseason, the Mavs had a three-headed monster at point guard. Between Raymond Felton, Devin Harris and Jameer Nelson, Dallas had three veterans who all needed to factor into the rotation.

But things kind of sorted themselves out. Felton sprained his left ankle early in the preseason—though he should be out for another 10 days or so—which left Harris and Nelson to divvy up the minutes at point.

Nelson was always penciled into the starting spot, and his play in the preseason has all but cemented his status as the man directing the offense.

He has looked in control, and over his four games his understanding of the offense has grown. He looks comfortable, and he is clicking especially well with Chandler Parsons in the preseason.

Nelson’s numbers look nice too. He’s averaging 4.1 assists, 8.7 points and hitting 51.9 percent from the field. His three-point shooting is a bit low, but he’s a career 37.4 percent shooter from deep, so there isn’t much to worry about.

What’s most important is that he looks to be in control of the offense. He knows where the ball needs to go and is distributing well. Point guard is a very important spot for the Mavs, and Nelson so far has allayed any fears that the position might slip after the departure of Jose Calderon.

Losing Minutes—Devin Harris

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At first glance, Harris’ preseason stats look very similar to Nelson’s. Harris is averaging one point less, but he’s tied with Nelson in assists and is averaging fewer turnovers and more steals.

So they seem to be neck-and-neck.

Last season Harris was a spark plug off the bench. He created well off the bounce and put a lot of pressure on opposing defenses. But the knock on him was that his shooting was horrible, as he shot 37.8 percent from the floor and 30.7 percent from three.

Now the logic was that since he missed so much time due to injuries, his shot was just off. Which is plausible, especially considering he missed the preseason too.

But with a whole healthy offseason under his belt, the numbers don’t back up this theory. His preseason shooting numbers are almost exactly the same as his 2013-14 regular-season numbers. He’s shooting 37.5 percent from the field and 29.5 percent from deep.

Granted, that’s a small sample size, but it’s worrying, nonetheless.

Now he might dominate the backup minutes in the early part of the season, as Felton will be getting back up to speed. But if Harris’ shooting woes continue he might end up being the change-of-pace guard off the bench again.

Distributing isn’t his thing. Harris is a scorer first, and if he’s inefficient in doing that his minutes will suffer.

Winning Minutes—Richard Jefferson

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Richard Jefferson was brought to Dallas for one reason. Jefferson is a 13-year veteran who shot 40.9 percent from three last season.

The Mavs love their shooters, and they love smart players. Jefferson fits the bill, and he’s shown that this preseason.

In five games, he’s shooting 46.2 percent from deep. He’s also shown a level of comfort with the offense, cutting to the basket well and even demonstrating an ability to get to the rim after the ball gets swung.

Just icing on the cake for the Mavericks.

If Jefferson could only space the floor, that’d be great. He was signed for the veteran’s minimum, and the Mavs aren’t counting on him to do much more than shoot.

But he’s proven to be much better than simply a shooter. Granted it’s the preseason, so nobody should get too incredibly excited. But it’s a good sign that Jefferson could see more than just spot minutes.