The Dallas Mavericks need to build a competent enough team around Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving in order to compete in the NBA’s fierce Western Conference in the 2023-24 season.
So the Dallas front office has added a forward who can defend multiple positions and stretch the floor with his three-point shot in the figure of Derrick Jones Jr. Aaron Turner, the player’s agent, confirmed to The Athletic that the 26-year-old small forward signed a fully guaranteed one-year deal with the Mavericks.
Jones played in 64 games for the Chicago Bulls last year and became an unrestricted free agent when he declined his player option. The University of Nevada Las Vegas graduate posted averages of 5.0 points and 2.4 rebounds in 14 minutes of play in an entirely backup role.
The forward arrived in the NBA for the 2016-17 season, at the age of 19, and has since played for the Phoenix Suns, the Miami Heat, the Portland Trail Blazers and the Chicago Bulls.
Mavs depth:
Luka Doncic
Kyrie Irving
Grant Williams
Derrick Jones Jr
Josh Green
Jaden Hardy
Max Glue
Seth Curry
Dante Exum
JaVale McGee
Tim Hardaway Jr
Dwight Powell
Dereck Lively II
Richaun HolmesWhat seed will the Mavs be in the West this season? pic.twitter.com/jXBDclqHTs
— StatMuse (@statmuse) August 9, 2023
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How will Derrick Jones Jr. help Doncic’s Mavericks?
One of the small forward’s talents that will benefit Dallas is his 3-point shooting. The forward has improved his 3-point percentage in recent years: in 2020-21 he hit 31.6%; in 2021-22 32.8%; and in 2022-23 he rose to 33.8%.
Another positive is that the Mavs could play small-ball with Jones as a 5. Last year he played 10 percent of his minutes at center, 86 percent at power forward and 4 percent at small forward.
In addition, he usually fights for the boards. According to Basketball Reference, Jones Jr. grabbed 11.6 percent of the available rebounds while he played for the Bulls last year. Likewise, the Bulls’ +/- per 100 possessions with Jones on the floor was +7.4.
2023-08-10 01:00:59
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