Mavericks' most controversial summer move is already looking like a major steal

Playing an extremely undermanned Oklahoma City Thunder squad that was somehow on the second night of a back-to-back during the preseason, the Dallas Mavericks coasted to a 106-89 victory in their first preseason game at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth.

While one can never put too much stock into preseason action, No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg had a tremendous debut through 14 minutes of first-half action, and beyond Flagg, new addition D'Angelo Russell was likely the most impressive Maverick.

Contrary to how he usually plays, Russell only took three shots in 15 minutes of action, and while this number would likely go up during the regular season, it was clear he was emphasizing the playmaking aspect of his game and trying to get everyone involved. While Russell only scored five points on 1-3 shooting from the field, he chipped in five assists in just the first half, most of which were witty bounce passes or through the pick-and-roll.

D'Angelo Russell removed all doubt in his Mavericks' debut

With Kyrie Irving out of the lineup, the Mavericks need someone who can playmake and shot-create at a high level in their starting unit, whether it's Russell or Brandon Williams, but with Williams missing this game due to a hamstring strain and Russell already being in the lead to be Dallas' starting point guard, it's clear who has the advantage up to this point.

As aforementioned, the Mavericks will need some of Russell's off-dribble shot creation in the midrange and 3-point areas this season, likely a lot more than they did in this preseason contest versus the Thunder. However, with as dynamic as Dallas' wings and bigs will be this season, Russell has to be thinking pass-first in certain scenarios, especially against teams with pestering point-of-attack defense, so it was great to see his selflessness on full display in his preseason debut.

Many fans and analysts have acclaimed Russell as an ill-advised shot-chucker throughout his career, or someone who has poor shot selection, but Russell simply isn't afraid of the moment (hence the ice in the veins), and bad misses will overdraw criticism from the media sometimes, despite being mere fragments of a game.

Admittedly, Russell had probably the worst season of his career last season, splitting time with the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets, but it's clear he's coming into this situation with the Mavericks as motivated as ever to contribute to winning basketball, especially since he's in a contract year.

Some Mavericks fans thought that Dallas should've signed someone better to be their stopgap point guard or traded for someone, but Russell proved that he can hold the fort down. Some of his former bad habits that had plagued him at certain points of his career were nowhere to be found in his debut, and any controversy surrounding the Mavs signing him instead of someone else disappeared for the time being.

Mavericks fans have seen worse in terms of shot-chuckers than Russell (i.e Tim Hardaway Jr.), but Russell has shown a tendency to sometimes force things from the perimeter despite things not going his way on repeat, so he'll need to continue his assertive approach to the point guard position for the Mavericks.

It's too early to make any certain claims, given it's preseason, but if Russell is performing to the best of his abilities, then Dallas will have gotten a steal this summer, and discourse from the media and fans over how Dallas should've opted to trade for a better starting point guard than Russell this past summer will completely subside.