The Dallas Mavericks have miraculously survived this recent stretch, as they have won four of their last five games heading into the All-Star break despite mass civil unrest within Dallas' fanbase due to the Luka Doncic trade. The only reparation that would suffice the discontentment in Dallas' fanbase at the moment would be if President of Basketball Operations Nico Harrison's decision to pair Anthony Davis with Kyrie Irving and company ends up bringing the Mavericks a championship at some point in the near future.
With Davis suffering a left adductor strain in his first game though, hope is starting to look bleak for the Mavericks in terms of reaching the pinnacle of the NBA's gauntlet, as it will be tough for the Mavericks to build a full head of steam ahead of the playoffs with all of their rotation big men projecting to be out until shortly before the playoffs start.
Dallas has been forced to play small ball with one of Olivier-Maxence Prosper or Kessler Edwards starting at center ever since Daniel Gafford went down in Dallas' overtime loss to the Sacramento Kings this past Monday night, and while the Mavericks won both of their following two games against the Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat behind role players stepping up and some strong defensive efforts, there's certainly doubt as to whether or not this lineup can sustain this production.
Kyrie Irving had to score 42 points for Dallas to beat the Warriors this past Wednesday, and Dante Exum scored 27 points on 11-13 shooting from the field in Dallas' win over the Heat, both of which are instances that the Mavericks can not rely upon on a game-by-game basis.
Brandon Williams deserves all of Jaden Hardy's minutes
With that being said, the Mavericks and head coach Jason Kidd must fine-tune Dallas' rotation to its maximum potential during this injury-riddled stretch, as the Mavericks have a razor-thin margin of error right now and could be in jeopardy of falling out of the playoff race in the West with just a few losses in a row. One cutthroat decision that Kidd may have to make in the best interest of the team right now would be to bench Jaden Hardy in favor of two-way contract signee Brandon Williams.
Hardy came into this season with a clear opportunity to become the lead guard for the Mavericks off the bench, but outside of a few hot shooting performances earlier in the season, his game hasn't taken much of a leap this season and it looks like he's shooting with practically zero confidence at the moment. In Dallas' recent victory over the Heat, Hardy went an atrocious 0-8 from the field in 19 minutes of action.
Instead of letting the game come to him and reacting based on what the defense gives him, there have been too many instances of Hardy forcing shots when they aren't there recently, and Kidd has handed him some DNP-CDs over the last few weeks.
Hardy was playing much better before the Doncic trade, but based on his inability to take any real strides as a shooter, playmaker, or shot creator on a consistent basis this season, it's time for Williams to get a shot in Dallas' rotation after splitting time with the Legends and being buried as an end-of-the-bench reserve throughout most of his season and a half with the Mavericks thus far.
Williams has only suited up in 19 games for the Mavericks this season, but every time that he's played he has displayed a more sound control of the offense as a lead guard compared to Hardy, and he arguably has a deeper bag to get to his spots compared to Hardy. The main knock on Williams' game has been his inability to become a true three-level scorer because of the lack of a consistent 3-ball in his game despite his solid shot creation abilities, though Williams has completely flipped that narrative this season throughout his time with the Mavericks and their G League affiliate squad in the Texas Legends.
In nine games with the Legends this season, Williams averaged 28.3 points, 7.3 assists, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.9 steals per game on 48.4/39.0/63.8 shooting splits. All of those numbers were career-high averages for Williams in the G League barring his free throw percentage, and the almost two steals per game he's averaging proves that his rangy frame and quickness bodes well for him as a point of attack defender at the NBA level, even if he's only 6-foot-2.
The 25-year-old is also shooting a career-high 40.9 percent from downtown in his limited action with the Mavericks this season, and he's looked comfortable stepping in to run the offense in select situations, evidenced by his 11-point performance on 4-7 shooting against the Heat this past Thursday night.
With Hardy showing no significant progress this season and Williams clearly having elevated his outside shot, Kidd should put politics aside and play Williams over Hardy on a consistent basis until proven otherwise, as the Mavericks need any advantage they can get at this juncture of the season with the all the injuries they are dealing with.
If Williams continues to thrive for Dallas, it wouldn't be surprising to see the Mavericks convert his deal to a standard contract, and Williams becoming a rotation guard for Dallas would give them the utmost leniency to consolidate Hardy elsewhere in a trade this summer if he continues to underperform.
