Dallas Mavericks: 5 takeaways from the season opening loss to Suns

Takeaway from Dallas Mavericks season opener vs. Suns: 5. Carlisle is still finding his rotation

The Mavs started Luka Doncic, Josh Richardson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Dorian Finney-Smith, and Dwight Powell as expected. Maxi Kleber was the first man off the bench with just over six minutes remaining in the first quarter. Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle does not have a set rotation, though.

He threw rookie Josh Green into the game for three minutes in the first half, but the 20-year-old never returned. Willie Cauley-Stein made his season debut in the second half and provided a spark for the Mavs. He had two points, two rebounds, and one assist in his six minutes of action. Dallas outscored Phoenix by 14 points during Trill’s time on the floor.

The Mavericks’ depth allows them to play the matchups and change up the rotation to maximize their chance of winning. He stuck with his same ten from the preseason games in the first half before shifting to playing Cauley-Stein.

It will be interesting to see if Carlisle changes things up on Christmas Day. Powell started, but only played 18 minutes. Coach Carlisle did not bring him back in the fourth quarter, instead opting to use Cauley-Stein and Kleber at center. It will be a situation to monitor going forward.

Carlisle has not decided on his rotations yet. That is understandable considering the shortened preseason and training camp. Fans will see more experimenting in the weeks ahead.

Next: No. 4