Davis Bertans may have already found his role with the Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks pulled off a surprising trade on deadline day that sent Kristaps Porzingis to Washington. There was plenty of talk about closing the KP era in Dallas, and how Spencer Dinwiddie could impact the Mavs, but few were discussing Davis Bertans coming to Dallas or how he could help the team.

Bertans played just 13 minutes in his debut, but had 12 points on four of eight shooting, including drilling three 3-pointers in the win over the Heat in Miami on Feb. 15. Porzingis made three or more threes just six times this season, and 23 times since the start of the 2020-2021 season. Bertans is more than willing to do something KP was not excited about too.

The Mavericks' newest big man is one of the best corner 3-point shooters in the NBA, and that alone could make him a dangerous weapon off the bench in Dallas. Here is a look at how Bertans may have already found his role and why fans should expect plenty more corner threes from the Latvian moving forward.

Davis Bertans may have already found his role with the Dallas Mavericks

Things were not good for Bertans in Washington this season, and he struggled to get minutes and produce, but the 29-year-old is a career 40.0 percent 3-point shooter over 1,807 attempts. Here is his first bucket with the Mavericks.

Bertans runs to the rim before quickly sprinting into the corner for a wide-open 3-pointer. He had a telling quote in his postgame presser.

Such is life when flanking superstar Luka Doncic on the Mavericks. Dallas creates 9.7 corner 3-pointers per game this season, which ranks as the fourth-most in the NBA, and they connect at 39.1 percent or the sixth-highest percentage in the league. Luka’s one of the best drive-and-kick players in the world, which creates a ton of open corner threes.

Bertans is a career 52.0 percent corner 3-point shooter. Yes, you read that correctly. No, it is not a misprint. Bertans has shot north of 50 percent from the corners in four of the last five seasons, including making 19 of 32 attempts so far this year. He is unbelievable on corner threes, and now he flanks one of the best creators in the league.

Fans should not expect a monster role for Davis Bertans moving forward. He will struggle to live up to his current salary, but the 6’10 big man is going to come off the bench for Dallas and sink open 3-pointers. He will have plenty more games where makes three 3-pointers and is a key contributor to a win. Bertans has a quick release and is never afraid to fire away.

The Dallas Mavericks need that, and it is fantastic to see the 6’10 big man finding his role so quickly. Fans should not expect a game-changer and there will be nights when his shot is not falling, and Bertans is virtually unplayable, but he can make an impact with his jumper. It was clear in Tuesday’s win over the Heat and will be moving forward.