Caleb Martin's resurgence is exactly what the Mavericks' defense needs

After being somewhat injury-riddled last season, Caleb Martin missed the Dallas Mavericks' first four games this season with a right thumb sprain, but Martin has made a tremendous impact in his two games back in the lineup. Martin was one of the biggest wild cards heading into the season due to his inconsistent offense, but if he's solid enough offensively to stay on the court, it will do wonders for Dallas' point-of-attack defense.

Martin is easily Dallas' best perimeter defender from a one-on-one perspective, as he has a stout frame but is still quick and laterally sound enough to stick on point guards. Dallas' starting shooting guard, Max Christie, has been average at best as a perimeter defender so far, so Martin getting consistent run could give Dallas one of the top defenses in the league.

Caleb Martin playing well on offense will make him integral to Mavs' D

Dallas currently ranks 16th in the league with a defensive rating of 111.3. Their defense has been splashy in that Daniel Gafford has been a stellar rim protector, and Zaccharie Risacher and Cooper Flagg have been elite as weak-side shot blockers, as well as jumping passing lanes for steals. However, Dallas has still been giving up slippage at the point of attack, as Dallas doesn't have the biggest guards.

Kyrie Irving competes hard defensively, but he'll never be an elite defender due to the amount of energy he has to expend on the offensive end, as well as his lack of size. Marcus Sasser is somewhat in the same boat in terms of his lack of size, and Sergio De Larrea lacks the strength to be elite defensively at this stage in his career.

This is why there's an urgent need for Martin to continue to be competent offensively, as he'd have to be a featured part of Dusty May's rotation if this trend continues. Martin can take Dallas' defense from middle-of-the-pack to top-tier if he's playing consistently, which obviously hinges on how well he can shoot, push the pace in transition, and effectively attack closeouts.

Martin needs to ride the momentum from his hot start

Martin's scored 18 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the field in his first two games for the Mavericks this season, and he's shot a stellar 4-for-7 from outside. Martin has never been an elite 3-point shooter, but he's always been solid from the corners, and Dallas has enough offensive spacing to continue to give him more wide-open looks compared to his last season and a half in Dallas.

Martin appears to be fully healthy from some of the shoulder issues that hindered his shooting ability during his time in Dallas thus far, so hopefully his health doesn't stay in flux this season. He's Dallas' only other player above 30 years old on the roster outside of Irving, and he has had some big moments in the playoffs throughout his career, so it will pay extreme dividends if he can continue to regain his form on both sides of the ball.

Dallas definitely lost the Quentin Grimes-Martin trade at face value, but with Martin still having over $19 million remaining on his contract over the next two seasons, it'd be a huge win if he continues to embrace the role of being a guard-stopper and a decent contributor offensively, as the Mavericks will recoup a lot of lost value from that deal if this persists.

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