Gauging the panic meter on 5 struggling Mavericks before NBA Playoffs

On Wednesday night, the Dallas Mavericks took down the Miami Heat on the road. This was their 16th win in the last 18 games, and everything seems to be going right for them ahead of the 2024 NBA Playoffs.

Luka Doncic continues to break records, Kyrie Irving has been an excellent leader, and all of the role players are filling in beautifully. The play of role players is huge in the playoffs, and it looks like most of the Mavs role players are ready to step up to the plate.

With Dallas' win on Wednesday night, it was confirmed that they will play the LA Clippers in the first round of the playoffs.

Gauging the panic meter on 5 struggling Mavericks before NBA Playoffs

This will be the third time in five years that Dallas is playing LA in the first round, and the Mavs may be catching them at the perfect time due to their injuries. Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden have all been battling injuries lately, and the Mavs are finally starting to get healthy (outside of Dereck Lively II).

All signs are pointing to the Mavs making a deep playoff run, but there are some struggling players who need to play a bit better before the playoffs.

Here we gauge the panic meter on five struggling Dallas Mavericks players ahead of the 2024 NBA Playoffs.

5. Jaden Hardy

Jaden Hardy is someone whose minutes have gone up and down all season long, and his play has taken a dip over the last month.

Hardy is averaging 7.0 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game this season while shooting 40.8 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from downtown. Even though Hardy has had some excellent stretches this season, he is struggling when the team needs him most.

This time last year, Hardy was emerging as one of the best shooters on the team, but this season he is falling to the end of the bench. Hardy hasn't scored in double digits since March 11, and it doesn't look like he will be in Jason Kidd's playoff rotation.

Hardy is someone who Kidd has said he wants to play more, but Kidd has also alluded to him not being in the rotation at all for the remainder of the year. You never know which Hardy you're going to get lately, and he hasn't been as efficient as usual lately.

It's hard to grade someone whose minutes are so sporadic, but Hardy doesn't look ready to contribute in the playoffs just yet. Hardy could quickly prove that he deserves some minutes in the playoffs depending on how he plays in the next two games, but his play lately has not been the best.

Panic Meter - 6

4. Josh Green

Dallas Mavericks guard Josh Green returned to the lineup on Wednesday night after missing nearly a month with an ankle sprain, and Green didn't have the best return to action.

Although Green knocked down one corner three, he ended the night shooting 1-5 from the field with three points, four rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Green hustled as he always does in this game, but even before his injury, Green wasn't very consistent.

Green hasn't had back-to-back games with 10 or more points since early February, and inconsistency has plagued his young career. For the most part, he has struggled to string together consistent performances, and consistency matters in the playoffs.

If Green is consistently not effective in the playoffs, he could be someone whose minutes decrease.

Green's performance isn't judged on just scoring and his ability to full-court press and defend in space will be crucial, but he hasn't taken the fourth-year jump that many people expected.

It's not like Green is playing awful, but he's not playing great either. It has to be considered that it may take a while to get back into a groove since he just returned from injury, but he doesn't have much time since the playoffs are soon.

Green is at his worst when he isn't playing with confidence, and he was nearly unplayable during the 2022 NBA Playoffs because he had no confidence.

Green will likely be an effective role player in this year's playoffs, and his value will skyrocket if he can knock down open shots.

Panic Meter - 4

3. Dereck Lively II

Dallas Mavericks rookie center Dereck Lively II is the only player on this list who isn't struggling on the floor, but his injuries are starting to become a concern.

Lively II is out with a knee sprain, and Jason Kidd has already said that he will miss the final two games of the regular season tonight and on Sunday. He is already off crutches and uses a knee brace and sleeve, but there have been no reports indicating how serious this sprain actually is. If serious, this would be a massive blow for the Mavs considering how crucial he has been for their success all season long.

Lively II has also battled multiple ankle sprains and a minor back injury this season, and him missing 27 regular season games as a rookie isn't a good sign. These injuries will hopefully decrease as he gets used to playing 82-game seasons, but this series against the LA Clippers could be impacted significantly if Lively II can't play.

The Mavs likely still have the edge in this series even without Lively II, but the panic meter when it comes to his injury is going off just because of how little we know about the severity of it. Everything could be fine once game one of the playoffs rolls around, but there is definitely some concern about his availability.

Panic Meter - 7

2. Tim Hardaway Jr.

Dallas Mavericks guard Tim Hardaway Jr. has been in and out of an offensive slump for a large portion of the second half of this season, and fans should be concerned with his performances assuming that he'll have a role in the rotation during the playoffs this season.

This season, Hardaway Jr. is averaging 14.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 0.5 steals per game while shooting 40.4 percent from the field and 35.5 percent from downtown, but his play as of late has been poor.

In April, Hardaway Jr. is shooting 25.7 percent from downtown, and this is the time of the year when he needs to be shooting his best. Having positive momentum as a shooter rolling into the playoffs can be huge for shooters' confidence, but it doesn't look like the Mavs are going to get that from Hardaway Jr.

Over the past few months, Hardaway Jr. has improved as a passer, but his fit in the offense comes and goes. In some games, he looks fully invested in his role, and in other games, he gets tunnel vision and is set on firing up a couple of shots once he checks into the game.

Since Hardaway Jr.'s impact is heavily based on his shooting, he needs to find a happy medium. He is always going to take tough shots, but him playing in the flow of the offense during the most important stretch of games during the season will be vital.

Panic Meter - 9

1. Maxi Kleber

Dallas Mavericks veteran forward has had a productive month of April and looks to be much more confident on both ends of the floor, but his concerning month of March must be looked into a little bit when analyzing his performances heading into the playoffs.

This season for Dallas, Kleber is averaging 4.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 0.4 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game while shooting 42.4 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from downtown. This has undoubtedly been the worst season of Kleber's career, and although his play on both ends has looked promising lately, he needs to continue this into the playoffs.

In the month of March, Kleber averaged 2.2 points per game while shooting 32.3 percent from the field and 24 percent from downtown. Kleber has always been judged on his ability to do the little things, play good defense, and play with physicality when on the floor, but even those things can cover up how poorly he played in March.

He didn't look confident when shooting the ball and his defense as a stretch big wasn't good enough to warrant him playing heavy minutes either. Jason Kidd hasn't been playing as much small ball with Kleber at the five recently, but he is someone who they will need to play well in the playoffs.

Kleber was a huge difference maker during the team's 2022 playoff run, and if Mavs fans could see similar results in the 2024 playoffs if he can keep playing like he has been. He has been much more confident, he is extremely versatile, and his defense has been superb.

Panic Meter - 4