4 Areas the Dallas Mavericks will need to improve upon after All-Star break

The Dallas Mavericks have put themselves in great position to make a run toward the top six seeds in the Western Conference by the time the NBA Playoffs roll around, as Dallas has won six straight games heading into the All-Star break. The Mavericks acquired the likes of P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford at the trade deadline and they've played in Dallas' last three victories ahead of the break.

Gafford and Washington's impact for the Mavericks has been extremely noticeable already, as both players have made an immediate impact from a rebounding and defensive perspective in just three contests for the Mavs so far. As we've stated all season, Dallas' biggest holes were their lack of bigger-bodied wings as well as a backup center, and they addressed both of those issues through the additions of Washington and Gafford.

4 Areas the Dallas Mavericks will need to improve upon after All-Star break

However, there are still many areas that the Mavericks can still improve upon before they head into the playoffs, even if only marginally. Many of Dallas' remaining issues stem from having not seen their full lineup together due to injuries, or they are issues that are fixable through coaching and effort.

Whether or not these issues get fixed could be the difference in Dallas winning a playoff series, as the playoffs are all about winning within the margins given how high the skill level typically is on both sides. With that being said, here are four areas that the Mavericks must improve once they return from the All-Star break.

4. Minutes allocation and lineup combinations

It's well known that Dallas Mavericks' head coach Jason Kidd has stuck to a decently tight rotation throughout most of the season, but many Mavericks' fans believe Dallas' trade deadline acquisitions will ease the burden of the heavy workload that Kidd has commanded out of his starting lineup this season.

The odd thing about Kidd's rotation is the amount of lineup combinations that Dallas has played this year. Even if the Mavericks are playing a pretty tight eight-man or nine-man rotation, as that has often been the case against most opponents Dallas has played this year, injuries have derailed the Mavericks from having seen any five-man lineup scratch the 100-minute mark together thus far.

Dallas' most played five-man lineup this season is Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic, Derrick Jones Jr., Grant Williams, and Dereck Lively II. That combination has only played 99 minutes together this season, and Grant Williams isn't even on the Mavericks' roster anymore. As much of an impact as P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford have had for the Mavericks thus far, Kidd still hasn't fully optimized the rotation involving them nor the lineup combinations he can use with them either.

While it's understandable that Dallas may need some time to figure out their most effective lineups since they just made some roster moves, the Mavericks don't have much time to figure this out before the playoffs with only 27 games left in the season. Luka Doncic has been playing a career-high 37.4 minutes per game this season as well, so Jason Kidd will need to be cognizant about over-extending Doncic in meaningless minutes for the rest of the season to ensure he isn't dragged down by the playoffs.

The Mavericks have some young talent in their two-way department that they should consider playing down the stretch of the season as well, especially when you take into consideration that Dallas has the tenth easiest remaining schedule in the league.

Kidd shouldn't sabotage Dallas' rotation by playing Olivier Maxence-Prosper extended minutes for instance, but throwing players like that some minutes in easier contests could go a long way toward ensuring Dallas' roster is healthy during the playoffs and their young players get to develop at the NBA level.

3. Transition defense

The Dallas Mavericks currently rank 23rd in transition defense across the NBA, as it’s been one of Dallas’ more underlying issues all season. Transition defense in the modern NBA is no easy task, as teams routinely advance the ball to try and shoot three-pointers in transition more so than ever before.

However, the Mavericks have got to be better at transition defense once they return from the All-Star breaks and there’s a variety of ways they can do this. With the addition of Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington, Dallas has already seen how much more athletic their frontcourt is through just three contests. This should help the Mavericks with their transition defense going forward, but the biggest thing the Mavericks will have to do to fix this issue will be their effort.

As otherworldly as Mavericks’ superstar Luka Doncic is, he does have a tendency to be lackadaisical getting back on defense when he’s arguing calls with the referees. This usually puts the Mavericks in disadvantageous situations with their transition defense at least a couple of times every game. Dallas also has to do a better job of getting their defense back and set up in time, as they occasionally fail to get set up and can’t get a body on a body in transition.

Sprinting back off of long misses and turnovers needs to be a key emphasis for Dallas going forward as well if they want to improve their transition defense. We can only hope Dallas’ influx of athleticism will help mend their transition defense, as it’s certainly an area teams will look to exploit come playoff time if the Mavericks continue to let this issue seap through.

2. Diversification of Mavs' offense

Perhaps the most glaring flaw in the Mavericks' offense since the genesis of the Luka Doncic era is the Mavericks lack of ability to diverisfy their offense. Dallas is currently averaging the second-most three-point attempts in the NBA this year at 40.3 attempts per game, yet they only wield the tenth best three-point shooting percentage as a team at 37.3 percent.

Is Dallas' trend in being one of the highest three-point taking teams in the last few seasons a product of the heliocentric offense surrounding Luka Doncic? It very well could be given how opposing defenses are increasing the amount of traps and double-teams on Doncic nearly every season, as Dallas is often forced to work the 4-on-3 which typically results in one of their wings needing to take a three-pointer or make a play.

Dallas has been increasing their off-ball movement in these scenarios as of late, and the addition of Kyrie Irving last year has definitely dwindled the Mavs' over-reliance on Doncic as their only source of offensive creation. The Mavericks need to continue to push role players like P.J. Washington, Josh Green, and Dante Exum to create offense off the catch and be active screeners/cutters as well.

A case study of where Dallas excelled in this department was against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Washigton and Gafford's first game in Dallas. The Mavericks finished with converting an impressive 15-39 three-point field goals, but more importantly the Mavericks had 66 points in the paint.

The more guard-screen actions the Mavericks run and the more off-ball movement they get, the more their offense will be less reliant on three-pointers like in the Oklahoma City game. Based on their personnel Dallas is bound to shoot a decent amount of shots from beyond-the-arc, but if Jason Kidd instills more diverse offensive actions down the stretch of the season for the Mavericks, then they'll be much less easier to beat come playoff time.

1. Acclimating P.J. Washington into Dallas' offense

While Daniel Gafford has come in and made an instant impact on both ends for Dallas on his first three contests with the Mavericks, this hasn’t been the case for fellow Dallas trade deadline acquisition P.J. Washington.

That’s not to say that Washington has played badly whatsoever though, as the 25-year-old forward is showcasing how his lengthy frame and athleticism will be crucial to Dallas’ wing defense and rebounding.

Washington has played excellent defensively for Dallas through three games and that was arguably the biggest question mark with him when he was traded to the Mavericks’ organization, so he’s answered the call from fans and Dallas’ front office on that front.

However, Washington has looked jittery on offense for the most part barring his debut game for the Mavs versus Oklahoma City where he scored 14 points on 6-10 shooting from the field. Washington hasn’t been featured heavily in the Mavericks offense though to his credit, and Dallas hasn’t done the best job of getting him moving off-ball besides the Oklahoma City game. Washington is a player who can be dynamic in space when he gets the ball off a curl or cut, so Dallas needs to do a better job at taking advantage of his physical tools.

Washington also has flashed shot creation ability in the mid-range in Charlotte, so the Mavericks should at least throw him a couple one-on-one opportunities to attack mismatches despite Dallas already having some of the best shot creators in the league in Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. Ensuring Washington is an offensive threat will be big for Dallas, especially if it may take a while for him to find his rhythm from three-point range.

Dallas can’t afford for Washington to be a one-dimensional 3-and-D wing, so hopefully increased comfortability in the Mavs’ system as well as some increased time over the All-Star break for the Mavericks’ coaching staff to acclimate Washington into the offense, will prompt a different P.J. Washington in Dallas offensively then we have seen through three games.