Mavericks Nightly

Cooper Flagg is the centerpiece. He is 19 and wears No. 32. Kyrie Irving, 34, is the veteran in the backcourt with 14 years of experience. The frontcourt includes P.J. Washington, Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II, Santi Aldama and Moussa Cisse. Naji Marshall, Max Christie, Zaccharie Risacher and Caleb Martin fill out the wings. The guard group has Marcus Sasser, Jett Howard and Walter Clayton Jr. The roster carries four rookies: Morez Johnson Jr., Sergio de Larrea, Tarik Biberovic and Tobi Lawal. It is a young group around Flagg. Risacher is 21. De Larrea and Johnson are 20. Irving, Martin and the 28-year-olds give the rotation some experience.

Five Mavericks are listed out. Each one has an estimated return date of October 23, the day of the opener. Jett Howard has a right calf injury. Caleb Martin has a right thumb injury. Tarik Biberovic has a right heel injury. Dereck Lively II has a right foot injury. Santi Aldama has a knee injury. Aldama matters most to the rotation. He averaged 14.0 points and 6.7 rebounds in 43 games last season. Lively played only 7 games last season, so his foot is worth watching as the year goes on. If any of the five miss the opener, Gafford, Cisse and the rookie forwards should see more frontcourt minutes.

Dallas went 26-56 last season. Its offensive rating was 110.3 and its defensive rating was 115.5, for a net rating of -5.2. The Mavericks played at a 102.6 pace and scored 114.1 points per game. Flagg led the team at 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 70 games. He shot 29.5 percent from three. Naji Marshall averaged 15.2 points. P.J. Washington averaged 14.2 points and 7.0 rebounds. Max Christie was the best shooter, hitting 40.4 percent from three in 77 games. Risacher posted the best plus-minus among the regulars at -0.2. The most-used lineup was Washington, Gafford, Marshall, Christie and Flagg. It logged 92.0 minutes with a net rating of -0.6.

Seven players from last season are gone. Khris Middleton is with the Wizards. Brandon Williams is with the Warriors. Klay Thompson is with the Heat. Marvin Bagley III and Ryan Nembhard are both with the Nuggets. John Poulakidas and Dwight Powell are unsigned. The Mavericks waived Powell on October 19 and cut Seth Lundy and Poulakidas on October 17. Marc Stein reported on October 20 that Dallas was considered likely to sign Walter Clayton. On October 21, Clayton was reported to have agreed to a two-way deal with the Mavs. Christian Clark's October 20 notes covered Irving, Powell, Cisse, the injuries and Johnson.

The opening week is tight. Dallas plays at Indiana on October 23 and hosts San Antonio on October 24, so the season starts with a back-to-back. Then the Mavericks travel to Miami on October 26 on NBA TV. That game is Klay Thompson's first against his old team. Oklahoma City comes to American Airlines Center on October 28 on ESPN. Houston visits on October 30 for an Emirates NBA Cup game. Dallas has already played Houston three times this month and is 1-2 in those games. With five players listed day to day around the opener, minutes in the frontcourt will be the main storyline of this first stretch.