As far back as you go, Mavericks’ coaches have always stressed that good depth wins games and great depth wins championships in the NBA.
Not because great depth is necessary in the playoffs. It’s not.
It’s necessary to navigate the 82-game regular season to get to the playoffs.
And one thing you’ll never hear a coach gripe about is having too many capable players.
Which brings us to the Mavericks, who through seven games already have nine players averaging at least 19 minutes per game and that doesn’t even include Morez Johnson Jr., who has been on a minutes restriction, or Santi Aldama and Dereck Lively II, both of whom have been sidelined with injuries.
All three would be major contributors in the Mavericks’ rotation if completely healthy.
In their current state, having a slew of experienced, talented players on their bench is a godsend. But when they get totally healthy, they may face a stiff challenge to keep everybody positively engaged.
But that’s when you find out a lot about players.
“What are you here for? If you’re here to win, it’s not a problem,” Sacramento coach Doug Christie said before Monday’s visit by the Kings to American Airlines Center. “But if you’re here for some different things, there’s chirping and chattering and all that . . . Everyone wants to play but the ultimate goal here is to win. That’s what we’re all here to do.
“Normally, winning means to sacrifice of oneself for the greater of the whole and when you have depth, that’s what you do. Everyone has to give a little bit.”
Mavericks’ coach Dusty May is thrilled to have a roster stacked with capable NBA players. And they needed the return of Naji Marshall from a three-game absence with an illness to help make up for the loss of Kyrie Irving, who sat out against the Kings for injury management to his surgically repaired knee.
May knows players all want to play in games. It’s a mathematical impossibility to make all 15 players on an active roster happy every game.
“It makes the decision-making much more difficult because you have so many guys who are similar skillsets and stages of their careers,” May said. “And they’re all capable. Each night presents different challenges. And each and every game someone different kind of has it going. Obviously, with some players out, it’s even more of a luxury.
“With Kai out, it gives a couple of the young guys a much greater opportunity. And we’re very confident in those guys. The experience is important for them. Games like this are where depth really comes into play.”
The Mavericks played 10 players in the first quarter Monday against the Kings. That's pretty much been the norm through the season's first two weeks.
May said there are matchups that come into play when determining who plays and who sits on certain nights.
“Absolutely,” he said. “There are (times) we’ll play this guy because he’s a better defender and this guy when maybe we need some offensive pop. Sometimes, it’s just a game where we’re struggling making shots and maybe a guy who shoots a little better will get the nod.
“We still have some guys on minutes restrictions. So we’re juggling a lot of different lineups and combinations. Hopefully, later this season we’ll be a little more settled in. But whatever it takes to find a way to win each particular game is the goal.”
It goes back to one of the oldest sayings in the NBA, first uttered by one of the great coaches of all time, Chuck Daly, who said that players only want three things: 48 minutes, 48 shots and $48 million.
Clearly, that can’t happen. But while a competitive roster can bruise some egos in the regular season, if a team is winning, it’s rarely a problem.
“Sometimes it’s my night, sometimes it’s your night,” Christie said. “I had the luxury and the honor to play on a team that was that way. Sometimes it was me. Sometimes it was Mike (Bibby), Bobby (Jackson), Peja (Stojakovic), Hedo (Turkoglu) it just depended. But we were all happy for each other at the same time.
“But the next day in practice, it got a little interesting, but that’s good because that’s how you make it happen.”
Wooo-pig Soooie: Darius Acuff Jr., Sacramento’s 19-year-old rookie out of Arkansas, is the top-scoring, top-assisting player from this summer’s draft.
He came into Monday’s game averaging 26.3 points and 6.3 assists. He was the seventh pick in the draft. The top four picks were universally agreed upon by most experts. Then there were four point guards behind the top four.
The Los Angeles Clippers took Keaton Wagler No. 5 and Brooklyn took Mikel Brown No. 6. Fans of those teams no doubt will watch Acuff with great interest.
“He’s a special player,” Christie said. “The other night, he took off and I just said, whoa. I didn’t realize the athleticism was like that. He uses it only when needed, which is like a veteran thing, but he makes big shots, has deep range and is not bothered by pressure.”
Briefly: Kyrie Irving sat out Monday’s game for injury management to his surgically repaired left knee. May was asked if five games in seven nights was the reason and said: “That’s a big part of it.” . . . Elsewhere on the injury front, Santi Aldama (recovery from right knee surgery) is “moving closer and closer,” May said. “I think for him it’s coming pretty soon.” As for Sergio De Larrea (right knee sprain), he will be re-evaluated for his knee injury this week.
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