Dallas Mavericks: Examining defensive woes and how to fix them

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Dallas Mavericks Luka Doncic Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /

The Dallas Mavericks are getting crushed by defensive breakdowns

The Mavs are not in sync and working together on the defensive end of the floor. Damian Lillard drove to the basket for a wide-open dunk on Feb. 14 that underscores the issue.

I don't think Josh Richardson was real happy with Kristaps Porzingis here. Mavs defensive rating with Porzingis on the floor during 5-1 stretch entering tonight: 134.1 https://t.co/a16f9SaGXX
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) February 15, 2021

Fans have seen it far too many times from the Mavericks. One player assumes the other is going to drop into the paint and contest the shot, but he sticks with his man leaving the rim wide open. The Mavericks need to lock in and be tied together to improve their defense.

Dallas is currently 29th in the NBA at defending the pick and roll, per NBA Stats. They allow 0.97 points per possession as the opposition scores over 43 percent of the time. Kristaps Porzingis struggles defending on the perimeter, so the Mavs need to avoid switching. They often go with a drop coverage, but the elite guards in the Western Conference can torch Dallas with jumpers.

The Mavericks also rank 27th in transition defense. They average the third-fewest turnovers in the league, but struggle to stop teams when they get out and run.

What can the Dallas Mavericks do to improve their defense?

Next: How can they improve?

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