Mavericks say quiet part out loud about D'Angelo Russell on opening week

It's only been two games for the Dallas Mavericks, and it'a already safe to say that this is a forgettable start for the team. Not only would the Mavericks get dominated by Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs on opening night, but the Mavericks would double down a disappointing loss with a 117-107 defeat to a young Washington Wizards squad.

There are hardly any positives a team like the Mavericks can pull from a loss to the Wizards, but one narrative that has followed the Mavericks through the first two games of the season is how badly D'Angelo Russell has looked. During the offseason, the Mavericks would sign Russell to a two-year contract in the hopes that he could become the team's stopgap guard while Kyrie Irving remains sidelined, but two games into the regular season, it's already clear that Jason Kidd is opting to go with other players in the rotation.

Against the Wizards, Russell would only clock nine minutes and didn't even make an appearance on the court during the second half of the game before being seen working out on a bike on the sideline. Only playing 24 minutes in his first two games as a Maverick is never a strong start for a team's marquee offseason signing, and they clearly don't trust him to run the show.

Jason Kidd is already favoring other players rather than D'Angelo Russell

During the offseason, one of the Mavericks' biggest needs was to address their lack of playmaking and ball handling throughout the roster. With this in mind, the Mavericks would settle for signing Russell to a two-year prove-it deal in the hopes that he could turn his career around and produce for a team looking to win more basketball games.

Through two games in the regular season, it's already clear to see that Russell will likely no longer be with the Mavericks a year from now, but that he may have already lost his spot in Kidd's rotation. Against the Spurs, Russell would play an unimpressive 15 minutes where he scored six points, only to follow that disappointing performance up with an uninspiring nine minutes of basketball against the Wizards.

In favor of Russell, Kidd has often looked to rookie Ryan Nembhard, Brandon Williams, and Jaden Hardy. These are not only players that are directly competing with Russell for minutes on the floor, but it's telling that Kidd has already looked in favor of a rookie over a 10-year vet who was poised to turn his career around in a Mavericks uniform.

Way too often, Russell has found himself playing inconsistent basketball where one minute he is looking to create for his teammates and the next second he is tunnel visioned into a drive and a bad shot at the rim. Not only has Russell clearly lost a step within his offensive bag, but his athleticism has visibly declined as he is nearing the wrong side of the age of 30.

It's going to take a lot before Russell can be trusted with the ball in his hands, but a good start would be by buying in on the defensive end of the floor and executing what one of the Mavericks' biggest problems has been, and that is point of attack defense. Assuming Russell can truly hone in on defense and offensive consistency, there may eventually be a place for him in Kidd's rotation, but it's already clear that Russell's playing days are numbered in Dallas.