Dallas Mavericks: Ryan Broekhoff’s role for the 2019 season

Australian guard Ryan Broekhoff completed his rookie season for the Dallas Mavericks in 2018-2019. With the Mavericks spending their free agency in a conservative fashion, Ryan should have the opportunity to expand his role for the coming season.

In the summer of 2018, the Dallas Mavericks renounced the rights of Doug McDermott and let him walk after a quick stint at the end of the season. One of the Mavericks biggest needs going into the offseason 0f 2018 was matching McDermott’s three-point shooting ability by finding a replacement.

Realizing McDermott was going to command more money in free agency than expected. The Mavs made a more financially affordable move and signed Ryan Broekhoff to a two-year partially guaranteed contract.

Going undrafted in the 2013 NBA Draft, the former All-American played four seasons at Indiana’s Valparaiso University, averaging nearly 12 points per game over a total of 134 consistent games played. In college and in Australia, there was one thing that Broekhoff excelled at and made him attractive as a player: his shooting ability.

Bringing that attribute to the Mavericks was a must have last season due to the year prior. The Mavericks ranked fourth in three-point attempts per game but ranked 17th in three-point field goals made in 2017-2018. Even though the Mavericks struggled in three-point percentage in the 2018-2019 season, Broekhoff helped by averaging 41 percent from the three-point line.

Broekhoff averaged 11 minutes and 4 points per game showing that he could be an efficient option off the bench for the Mavs. Playing in 42 games with no starts, he was a role player that had a certain job to do, which was to help the Mavs in an offensive focused lineup.

What Mavs Fans Can Expect from “The Accountant,” in 2019

The Mavs had a decision to make this offseason with Ryan’s future on the team. By June 29th, the Mavericks had the option to waive Broekhoff’s fully guaranteed salary for the 2019 season. With the Mavs allowing the deadline to pass, Broekhoff will account for $1.9 million against the salary cap for this coming year.

Rick Carlisle and the Mavericks have been a very guard-heavy team the past few seasons. Because coach Carlisle often likes to use a double point guard lineup, the shooting guard position can be ignored at times. At the moment, the guards on the Dallas Mavericks are Delon Wright, J.J. Barea, Jalen Brunson, Seth Curry, Courtney Lee, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Broekhoff.

With Courtney Lee’s future with the Mavericks in doubt, there should be an opportunity for a bigger role this season for guards coming off the bench. Now that Ryan Broekhoff has spent a year with the coaching staff and built that relationship and trust, we could see more than ten minutes per game and potentially an improvement from 41 percent behind the line.

Seth Curry and Tim Hardaway Jr. will be Broekhoff’s biggest competitors this coming season for playing time. Barring an injury, it is a possibility that we see minimal playing time for another year.

Rick Carlisle and the rest of the coaching staff will have plenty of time in training camp and the preseason to take a look at and evaluate all player improvement. The value of shots behind the arc in today’s NBA is always sky high. Fans should look out for Ryan Broekhoff to be launching three-point shots and playing great basketball on the perimeter for the 2019 season.