Dwight Powell Showing Potential to Crack Mavs’ Rotation in 2015-16

Dwight Powell could use busy summer to help him earn real minutes for the Mavericks next season

The Dallas Mavericks summer league team has made it to the quarterfinals of the Las Vegas league – they’ll take on the Atlanta Hawks at 5 PM CT on NBA TV – and second-year forward Dwight Powell has been a big reason for their success.

Powell, acquired with Rajon Rondo from Boston back in December, has shown flashes of the potential to be a contributing rotation player while in the D-League and even with the Mavericks on the big stage since then, but his play so far this summer has been extremely encouraging for a team that can use all the front court depth they can get their hands on.

More from The Smoking Cuban

The numbers have been great for the Stanford-grad in his five games to date: 19.2 points (team-high), 9.2 rebounds (team-high), and 2.0 assists. But it’s more than that. He’s still moving very well for a player his size, but it looks like he’s bulked up a bit and has had much greater success finishing through contact than at any point I can remember.

Powell’s confidence out on the floor appears to have skyrocketed as well. He’s stepping into jumpers without hesitation both in pick-and-pop situations and when trailing the play, but also attacking the basket while flashing his athleticism and footwork in transition and the half court.

Here are the highlights of his 25-point, 8-rebound performance against Noah Vonleh and the Portland Trailblazer summer league team. He won’t be shooting 12 three-pointers at any point for the Mavericks when the real games begin, and seven personal fouls in 32 minutes isn’t ideal of course, but pay attention to the multiple ways Powell gets himself into scoring position.

A lot of this is to be expected. It’s summer league after all, and Powell, as an “established” NBA player, has the luxury of being a primary option against overall sub-standard competition.

But it’s clear that Powell has made strides with his game, and as he continues to learn and grow should progress even further. His time with the Canadian National Team later this summer will help in that regard. Powell will participate in the Pan American Games later this month and then in the FIBA Americas Cup in August and early-September.

And as much as playing in those games could help Powell, the practices could be even more beneficial. He’ll be going up against fellow professionals from around the league every day: Kelly Olynyk, Tristan Thompson, Anthony Bennett, Andrew Nicholson, and lottery pick Trey Lyles.

Powell’s busy summer just won’t quit, but it could be the offseason that helps propel him into Rick Carlisle‘s rotation when the regular season gets underway.

More from The Smoking Cuban

Home/Mavs News