Tarik Biberovic arrives in Dallas with the kind of shooting stroke that turns heads, but the Mavericks are going to need more than clean mechanics before he earns a real spot in Dusty May’s rotation.
That much is clear after his final season at Fenerbahce, where he hit 48.9 percent from three on 5.2 attempts per game in the BSL. Dallas certainly has reason to be excited about that part of his game, especially after finishing last season as one of the NBA’s weakest 3-point teams at 34.4 percent on 31.9 attempts per game. Biberovic’s spacing and catch-and-shoot value should help, but they won’t carry him all the way on their own.
The real separator may be what he does away from the ball. If Biberovic wants to be more than a player who shows up in garbage time, he has to prove he can defend at a level that keeps him on the floor. That’s where the competition gets steep.
Dallas packed the wing this offseason, and Biberovic is walking into a crowded room. He’ll be battling Max Christie, Zaccharie Risacher, Naji Marshall, Cooper Flagg, P.J.
Washington, and Caleb Martin for minutes as a rookie. Washington and Flagg look set for major roles, which leaves the rest of the group fighting for whatever is left.
That makes training camp and preseason especially important for Biberovic. They’ll be the first real chance to see where he fits, and he could start moving up the pecking order before the regular season even opens.
He won’t be the only one with a defined skill set. Risacher and Christie can defend and shoot, Marshall brings slashing and playmaking, and Martin finished last season looking like he might be able to recapture some of that 3-and-D edge. Biberovic can join that mix if his defense holds up and he avoids becoming a liability.
Right now, though, that side of the floor is still the question. He averaged just 0.4 steals per game for Fenerbahce last season and didn’t have a single multi-steal game.
He also blocked only three shots in 25 games. For a wing, that doesn’t tell the whole story, but it does underline that his defensive impact wasn’t jumping off the page.
The physical tools are there. At 6-foot-7 with a 6-foot-11 wingspan, he has the length to guard up when needed, and his strength should help too. The problem is lateral quickness, which is subpar and could make him a target in pick-and-roll situations.
That’s the danger for Dallas: if opposing teams can hunt him possession after possession, it becomes harder to keep him on the court no matter what the rest of the defense looks like.
Still, there’s a path here. Biberovic is described as a smart team defender who makes timely rotations, and if he can hold his own, he should put himself in a solid position. Even if his shot is falling right away in preseason, his defense may be the better clue for how big a role he can actually claim.
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For a team hoping to lean on its young talent sooner rather than later, that naturally raises some concern, even if the Mavericks are not treating it like a setback. P.J. Washington has already come away impressed by Johnsons strength and work ethic in practice, so the ability is there, but the bigger question now is how quickly Dallas can build him up without pushing too fast. [Read more 🡒]