The official start of the offseason will begin June 25 when the Dallas Mavericks are on the clock for the 2025 NBA draft.
While it’s safe to presume Cooper Flagg will be the first name uttered by NBA commissioner Adam Silver, the Mavericks remain an unfinished project that will need more roster reconstruction during free agency and trade season.
A champion has yet to be crowned for the 2024-25 NBA season, but it’s never too early to start looking ahead to next season.
We’re taking a look at where the Mavericks stand position by position. Monday’s breakdown featured the Mavericks’ precarious point guard situation. Tuesday, we looked at shooting guard. Dallas’ stacked group of small forwards were the topic of conversation Wednesday, and today we’re featuring the power forwards.
Power forward
On the roster: Anthony Davis, P.J. Washington, Naji Marshall, Olivier Maxence-Prosper, Kessler Edwards (two-way)
The starter: Davis.
The wild cards: Washington and Marshall. There’s a good chance Washington, a small forward, could serve as the team’s default backup power forward to Davis. Secondary rotations could include combinations of Washington at power forward and Davis, Dereck Lively II and Daniel Gafford at center. If Davis needs to miss games because of injury, Washington could return to starting at the four, a role he’s occupied since he was traded to Dallas during the 2023-24 season.
Outlook: Davis is the only traditional power forward on the Mavericks’ roster, and while that might appear to be a weakness, it helps when that one true power forward is among the top players in the NBA. Davis has been handed the keys to the franchise after being traded to Dallas for Luka Doncic, and his two-way talents are unparalleled when his body allows it.
Dallas’ offense will work primarily through Davis in the post, but he’s also displayed the ability to bring the ball up the floor. The Mavericks are expected to target a new playmaker during the offseason to alleviate their All-Star big man of that responsibility.
Davis averaged 24.7 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 2.2 blocks per game last season. If Dallas returns to the postseason and regains its status as a championship contender, he’ll be at the center of that success.
Washington, Marshall, Maxence-Prosper and Edwards can be interchangeable at the four spot. The Mavericks could also use a certain one-and-done freshman from Duke at the power forward position. If that’s the case, they would have two true power forwards on their veteran-heavy roster.
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More Mavericks positional outlooks
Point guard: Kyrie Irving injury makes PG depth an obvious priority
Shooting guard: Klay Thompson’s looming return
Small forward: P.J. Washington starts at SF until further notice
Center: Depth not a problem at center, highlighted by Dereck Lively