Mavericks may have just unlocked a new '7-foot-3' nightmare for the NBA

Media day is always fun-spirited with good vibes across the league, as players and coaches typically give the most PR-friendly answers in regard to tough questions being asked. With no games being played yet, there's little reason to get too high or low based on answers from media day, but a wild proposition from Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II may say otherwise, as Lively II claimed at media day to have grown to 7-foot-2 or 7-foot-3 over the summer.

Lively II is already officially listed at 7-foot-1, so this claimed growth would give him even more length and verticality than he already has, which is truly tantalizing considering he's already one of the best rim protectors in the league when fully healthy and dialed in. With Lively II still being only 21 years old, it's not out of the realm of possibility that he could be experiencing a late growth spurt, especially since he's already gotten as tall as he is.

So long as Lively II's growth doesn't hinder his mobility in any capacity, then this is a huge win for the Mavericks, and it's something they would've never expected to happen. It would be a lot less surprising if someone like 18-year-old Cooper Flagg grew an inch or two over the next two seasons, but it's fairly uncommon for males to see any growth after they reach legal drinking age, whether they are 7-footers or not.

Lively II claims to have grown to 7'2" or 7'3" over the summer

Don't get it twisted, Lively II growing an inch or two isn't going to vastly change the trajectory of this season, but it's going to make him just ever so much harder to get up a shot against, and those possessions add up over the course of an 82-game regular season. If Lively II can maintain his same mobility at the defensive end as aforementioned, he'll easily be one of the most athletic bigs in the league at 7-foot-2 or above, with only Kristaps Porzingis and Victor Wembanyama rivaling him.

Lively II also revealed he wants to start shooting the occasional trail or corner 3-pointer at media day, and with him already having an extremely high release point on his shot, this supposed growth would make his shot even harder to contest if he decides to step out beyond the arc.

Lively II has already started to develop his lower body strength and vertical since stepping foot in Dallas in 2023, so this increased height could make him nearly impossible to score on at the rim. It should be noted that Lively II's claims have not been officially confirmed by any means, but obviously he knows his body better than anyone else, so it seems very likely the tape measure will back up these claims.

Until fans see Lively II on the court more this season or the Mavericks come out with an updated official measurement for him, it's going to be hard to tell if his claims are true for sure, but an uptick in blocked shots or dunks this season would be a good indicator he's correct, though he's going to need to be more healthy this season for this to be the case.