John Poulakidas didn’t get on the floor in Dallas’ second preseason game, and that silence raised more than a few eyebrows.
For a 23-year-old two-way player who finished last season on a tear, the decision stood out. Poulakidas closed the year with 63 points over the Mavericks’ final three games, hitting 17 of 34 from deep in that stretch. He also wrapped up his rookie season by shooting better than 40 percent from three, which makes him exactly the sort of long-range threat Dallas would seem eager to evaluate early and often.
Instead, he sat through the Mavericks’ two preseason games against the Houston Rockets in Macao, China, while fans wondered whether he might be slipping onto the hot seat. With Dallas appearing interested in keeping Dwight Powell, one possible path discussed was waiving Moussa Cisse, waiving Poulakidas, and then signing Cisse back on a two-way deal in Poulakidas’ place. That chain of moves would have been a lot to shuffle, but it didn’t feel far-fetched after seeing Dusty May’s comments about Powell and noticing that Poulakidas was the only active player on the roster who did not play in that preseason game.
Then came Wednesday night against the New Orleans Pelicans, and Poulakidas answered in a hurry.
Coming off the bench, he gave Dallas a needed lift with 16 points and four 3-pointers. He also showed the kind of game that makes him useful beyond just being a shooter.
Poulakidas is comfortable catching and firing, he moves well without the ball, and he can even put it on the floor, relocate, and get himself another clean look. May also praised the grit he showed on the glass, where Poulakidas grabbed three rebounds, including two on the offensive end.
That sort of production mattered because the Mavericks badly needed offense from beyond the arc. Poulakidas was the only Dallas player to make more than two 3-pointers against New Orleans, and the team finished just 10-for-49 from long range. Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving were out, but Poulakidas still supplied the kind of spark the bench was missing.
Dallas is clearly planning to lean more heavily on 3-point shooting this season, but the numbers from last year tell the story: the Mavericks shot 34.4 percent from deep. Poulakidas can help push that in the right direction.
His performance against New Orleans was a reminder that his value isn’t abstract - he spaces the floor, and that’s a skill Dallas needs. He knows he has other areas to keep building, but the shot is what makes him stand out, and it’s why the Mavericks should think twice before moving on.
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Dusty May made sure to point out those details after the game, and they matter for Dallas because they speak to a player who can help in more than one phase. Risacher finished with six points, four rebounds, an assist, two steals and a block in 23 minutes, a stat line that showed both his versatility and the rough edges that come with preseason evaluation. The shooting efficiency was uneven, but the larger takeaway for the Mavericks is that there is already evidence of the kind of connective play that can make him useful once the games start to count. [Read more 🡒]
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For the Mavericks, the wrinkle is less about the name value of the deal than the roster math it could trigger. Dwight Powells return would require room, which means Dallas may have to make a decision somewhere else on the bench, and that is where the squeeze starts to matter. Hardys fit is easy enough to imagine in a second unit that could use more scoring, but the question is whether the Mavericks are ready to reshuffle bodies to make the move work. [Read more 🡒]
Moussa Cisse Is Making The Mavericks' Toughest Cut Decision Harder
Moussa Cisse turned the Mavericks third preseason game into a little more than another October tune-up, and in the process made Dallas roster math a lot more complicated. The young big man outperformed Dwight Powell in that outing, showing the kind of defensive activity and athleticism that can catch a staffs eye when the back end of the roster is still unsettled.
Powell still brings the sort of veteran leadership and basketball IQ that teams value when deciding who can help over the long haul, but the Mavericks have not locked in their final group yet. With both players still waiting on a decision, the competition has become one of the more intriguing questions hanging over camp. [Read more 🡒]