Tarik Biberovic has a major challenge to overcome as a Mavericks rookie

After the Dallas Mavericks acquired Tarik Biberovic in the Santi Aldama trade, many Mavericks fans have been excited for the sharpshooter to make his NBA debut in Dallas, but Biberovic has a tough challenge to overcome in his first NBA season. That challenge will be to disprove a long-standing history of EuroLeague sharpshooters struggling to replicate the same level of shooting once they transition to the NBA level.

EuroLeague stars who transitioned to the NBA in recent years, such as Nigel Hayes-Davis, Vasilije Micic, and Sasha Vezenkov, weren't able to maintain their status as elite marksmen at the NBA level. Of course, this doesn't apply to every EuroLeague shooter who has ever transitioned to the NBA, as former Maverick Peja Stojakovic and Bogdan Bogdanovic are examples of players who came to the NBA and were still elite shooters.

Tarik Biberovic will have to disprove recent history

However, there's no doubt there's a budding narrative in recent seasons that Biberovic will have to work to dispel. Beyond the notion that EuroLeague players struggle to maintain elite 3-point shooting percentages from Europe to the NBA, there are real factors making it more difficult for someone like Biberovic to maintain his level of shooting from outside at the NBA level.

The NBA is the most athletic basketball league in the world, and despite how high the level of play is in the EuroLeague, the EuroLeague doesn't have the same level of perimeter defenders or speed in terms of closing out and staying with shooters.

The NBA 3-point line is also slightly farther than in Europe, and there's no defensive three-second rule in the EuroLeague either. Given this, European clubs tend to clog the paint more often and aren't as bent on stopping elite outside shooters compared to in the NBA.

Biberovic must take advantage of potentially limited opportunities

Of course, this isn't an impossible feat for Biberovic to overcome, as he shot 48.9 percent from outside in the BSL (the top league in Turkey) for Fenerbahce last season, and shot roughly 40 percent from outside in the EuroLeague last season as well. He's also shot well beyond 45 percent from outside in multiple other seasons for Fenerbahce, which is extremely impressive considering Europe is often regarded as having the second-highest level of competition in the basketball world.

However, taking advantage of the opportunity will be everything for Biberovic in his first NBA season, as he joins a Mavericks squad that is overcrowded with forwards, meaning minutes won't be easy to come by. If he's shooting close to 40 percent from outside at the NBA level or above that mark, new head coach Dusty May will simply have to find minutes for the 25-year-old forward due to his size and shooting ability.

If Biberovic struggles to replicate the same level of outside shooting like some of his recent predecessors who have made the jump from Europe to the NBA, he may have a relatively short shelf life in Dallas. The Mavs desperately need more shooting around Cooper Flagg as they head into this new era, though, so hopefully Biberovic is able to prove doubters wrong this season and beyond.

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