NBA fans alike are feeling sorrow toward the Dallas Mavericks as they seem to be one of the unluckiest NBA teams in recent memory after everything that has transpired recently.
The Mavericks have had one of the shortest benches in team history. The Mavericks put up a good fight against the Milwaukee Bucks for one half of play earlier in the week, but by the time the second half began, the Bucks ran away with it as expected.
With the Memphis Grizzlies coming into town on Friday night, the competition was a lot more interesting. Memphis was coming off a four-game losing streak with the Mavericks just looking to make noise, especially after another horrific injury blow to their young forward, Olivier-Maxence Prosper. He will be the next Maverick to miss the rest of the season due to an injury, as he is expected to need wrist surgery.
Even with the horrific injuries, the Mavericks revealed a season-long puzzle that had not been solved until now. It involved Brandon Williams who has proven that he deserves to have a spot on the team for the near future. Jason Kidd has called upon him more recently, and he has delivered when needed.
Williams is proving he should've been in the mix all along
Even in a loss, Williams has had shades of great performances. Against Milwaukee, he showed the ability to make unselfish plays to his teammates by making the right pass, while also proving to be a big player from deep. He had 14 points, eight assists and five rebounds, proving to do it all on a shorthanded roster.
In a loss against Memphis, Williams showed his best stuff in his NBA career, with 31 points, six assists and five rebounds. This included an unselfish pass to Naji Marshall following a Memphis turnover, allowing Marshall to make up for his dunk hitting nothing but the rim from a play before.
While Mavs fans are still understandably upset with Nico Harrison's mega decision backfiring, Williams made some hope to be a valuable guard that Mavs fans can look forward to, especially as someone who can give the Mavs big minutes off the bench later this season if their main big guys come back and reignite hope into the season.
With Dallas' guard issues earlier this season with the inconsistency of Jaden Hardy and Spencer Dinwiddie along with the injury to Dante Exum, Kidd should have looked to give Williams some big minutes earlier in the season. His ability to create his own shot, get to the rim, and score at will are all valuable assets, and he is proving that he deserves a standard contract in Dallas or elsewhere next season.
Teams always need a microwave scorer off the bench who brings good energy, and Williams brings all of that and more whenever he is called upon. He has had the chance to learn behind Kyrie Irving in Dallas, and his development over the last year on Kidd's squad has been intriguing.
The Mavs clearly needed an answer shorthanded, and with Caleb Martin's Mavericks debut being short of exciting, Williams filled that role. Mavericks fans were looking for Martin to be a fearless player shooting open shots and taking the ball to the rim, but his first game in Maverick uniform seemed a bit too conservative. Williams knew his role and used his role to play loose and take advantage of the moment.
Only the Mavs front office will know if Williams will have a spot on the Mavericks in the near future, but he's making the most of this opportunity that Kidd is giving him on a shorthanded team to make his mark.
