Santi Aldama helps solve problems plaguing the Mavericks’ offense

The Dallas Mavericks decimated the Brooklyn Nets in a 130-93 victory on Sunday, earning their largest margin of victory this season. After dropping consecutive contests to the Sacramento Kings and San Antonio Spurs, Dallas bounced back with wins over the Utah Jazz and Brooklyn to move two games above .500.

In these back-to-back victories, the Mavericks' offense has improved in several areas, and that turnaround coincides with Santi Aldama's return to the lineup.

Dallas' second-chance offense is already benefiting from Santi Aldama

Against Utah, Dallas shot just 41.9 percent from the field and 28.1 percent from beyond the arc, which isn't exactly an efficient offensive showing. However, Dallas outrebounded Utah 21-8 on the offensive glass, leading to a 21-5 advantage in second-chance points. Aldama corralled nine rebounds against the Jazz, four of which came on the offensive glass. He even converted one of those offensive rebounds into a second-chance basket of his own.

A season ago, the Mavericks were one of the NBA's worst second-chance teams. Dallas ranked 22nd in offensive rebounding and 24th in second-chance points, despite fielding a relatively forward- and big-heavy roster. This season, the Mavericks have improved considerably in both areas and are only getting better, especially with Aldama in the fold.

Aldama's length and versatility have already stood out. The 7-foot big man is a bonus to Dallas' lineup because of his size alone, but there's more to it than that. He's not pigeonholed into playing center or power forward. His shooting prowess allows him to play the three, even in lineups alongside Morez Johnson Jr. and Daniel Gafford.

Aldama's versatility gives the Mavericks another offensive weapon

Thus, Aldama's perimeter game was more apparent against Brooklyn. He scored 12 points, shooting 5-of-7 from the floor and 2-of-4 from 3-point range.

Aldama scored in a variety of ways against Brooklyn. He scored off a dribble drive, stopping and popping for a short pull-up against Michael Porter Jr. Then, he splashed multiple triples by relocating around the 3-point line as Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving attacked the rim and drew help defenders.

Perhaps most impressive was his involvement in a fourth-quarter offensive sequence. Aldama attacked the rim before skipping a behind-the-back pass to Marcus Sasser in the corner. Sasser then swung the ball to Max Christie, who launched a 3-pointer but missed. Aldama remained around the rim, snagged Christie's miss off a deflection, and dunked the ball.

Lastly, Aldama scored his final points in transition, getting ahead of the pack and throwing down a fast-break jam.

Aldama is addressing two of Dallas' biggest offensive problems

This small sample of Aldama's 15-minute, 12-point performance against Brooklyn really puts his offensive versatility on display. At times this season, and especially last season, the Mavericks' offense has suffered from a lack of versatility. Dallas has players who can score from beyond the arc or in and around the paint, but not many who can do both, let alone find ways to score in between. Flagg and Irving are the notable exceptions.

Aldama isn't a solely perimeter-focused player, but he gives Dallas another option who can shoot it from deep or attack closeouts, an area where the Mavericks have struggled. It's been a glaring problem at times this season, especially when Irving is out. It's not like Aldama will completely remedy Dallas' shot-creation woes, but he's shown in limited time that he can at least take some of the burden off the team's stars.

The Mavericks didn't get some star, three-level scorer back from injury. But what Dallas did add was a versatile, multi-positional chess piece who can do a little bit of everything on the offensive side of the floor. Two of the Mavericks' longstanding issues — offensive rebounding and shot creation — are areas Aldama has already begun to address.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow