Mavericks' new 7-footer's elite performance exposes move they must make but can't

In the midst of being injured themselves, the Dallas Mavericks stumbled upon a take care of business type of game versus an undermanned Charlotte Hornets squad (14-44) on Thursday night at the American Airlines Center. Dallas operated eerily similar in this game to their Tuesday night loss versus the Los Angeles Lakers, as the Mavericks put forth a valiant and stout defensive effort, but struggled to get contributions offensively from their role players.

Klay Thompson and Kyrie Irving once again carried the load for the Mavericks, as the veteran duo had 43 combined points on 17-36 shooting from the field and 6-16 shooting beyond the arc. Thompson and Irving's poise through this post-Doncic era has been stellar up to this point, and they are continuing to serve as the lifeblood for a Mavericks team that has every reason to throw the white flag.

However, the tipping point to Dallas being able to take home a win versus the Hornets was exactly what they lacked in their loss to the Lakers on Tuesday. This was none other than Moses Brown, as the 25-year-old big man had his most dominant game since signing a 10-day contract with Dallas last week.

Moses Brown's exit from Mavs is inevitable despite stellar performance

Brown was announced as a starter by head coach Jason Kidd right before this game, and he gave Dallas the length and verticality they've desperately been seeking with all the injuries to their big men rotation, as Brown scored 21 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, finessed a career-high three steals, and blocked two shots in 31 minutes of action. Brown is proving he's easily capable of being Dallas' fourth rotational big man in case of emergency, which isn't a complete obsolete position on the roster given Kidd's willingness to play two bigs at once, but it doesn't seem like Brown will get the opportunity unfortunately.

Due to the Mavericks being hard-capped at the first apron because of the money they took back in their two deadline moves, the Mavericks barely had enough financial wiggle room to sign Brown to a 10-day in the first place, and now they don't even have the financial means to re-sign him to another one unless they wait till April 10 when a veteran's minimum slot will open up for Dallas.

This is extremely unfortunate as Brown is literally just starting to blossom for the Mavericks, as he's proved to be a far more physically imposing interior presence with his increased strength compared to his first tenure in Dallas, and his basketball IQ has clearly increased as well. Brown did an excellent job in the pick-and-roll game and probing in the dunker spot for drop-offs and lobs in this game, as fans could tell it only took him a few games to adjust to Irving and the rest of the guards' cadence.

He's also showcased better touch on shots around the rim, and while Brown may not be the athlete or level of rim protector that any of Dallas' three main bigs are, he's a solid two-way center that could've added to this roster beyond just this stretch where Dallas' centers are all injured. There were some skeptics of the Mavericks signing Brown to a 10-day compared to some other centers on the market, but those questions have been washed after Brown went head-to-head and played well against a budding paint beast in Mark Williams last night.

It's really unfortunate that the Mavericks will have to say goodbye to Brown after his 10-day expires, as Saturday's game versus the Milwaukee Bucks will mark Brown's last game in Dallas before other teams will inevitably inquire about his services for the remainder of the season. There's a shot in the dark the Mavericks could re-sign Brown for the rest of the season ahead of their playoff run once April 10 rolls around, but the Mavericks will have to survive this upcoming stretch with their current big man core of Dwight Powell and two-way center Kylor Kelley until they get some reinforcements from the injury department.

Brown will likely be on another team at that point anyway and Dallas' need for a center will hopefully be drastically less pressing than it is now, but Brown is putting up an outstanding sales pitch for other squads and will have one last opportunity to do that against a huge Bucks frontcourt on Saturday.