Is D'Angelo Russell the Kyrie Irving fill-in the Mavericks need?

After trading Luka Doncic for Anthony Davis last February, the Dallas Mavericks had to rely essentially entirely on Kyrie Irving for both scoring and facilitation from the point guard spot. After all, GM Nico Harrison shockingly failed to return any true ball handlers in the deal while sending away the team's engine and offensive focal point.

When Irving tore his ACL on March 3 against Sacramento, the season was essentially doomed to failure, as there was no one on the roster who could come close to replicating Irving's production at the lead guard position. Their season ended in the Play-In Tournament against the Memphis Grizzlies in one of the more anti-climactic finales in Mavericks history, given the team's trip to the NBA Finals in 2024.

Considering they also traded away Quentin Grimes, Dallas had to add some ball-handling due to the fact that Irving will be out until late January at best. They did so when they added veteran point guard D'Angelo Russell, who most recently played for the Nets and Lakers. In 2024-25, he averaged 12.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 5.1 assists on 39% from the field and 31% from beyond the arc.

Though hardly a replacement for Irving, Russell is still a potentially serviceable guard that can at least help the Mavericks tread water at the position until Irving makes his way back onto the floor. The primary problem with Russell is that his efficiency was poor last season, which is one of the things that Irving provides from a scoring standpoint.

D'Angelo Russell Needs to Bounce Back

If the Mavericks are going to find any kind of success in the first year of the Cooper Flagg era, they will need consistent production from D'Angelo Russell, who is entering his 11th season in the NBA after having played his poorest basketball since arguably his rookie season with the Lakers.

More than anything, he will be required to run the pick-and-roll with any number of Dallas' big men, including Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II, and Daniel Gafford, all of whom are elite lob threats that can create efficient shots when given accurately placed passes. Luckily for Dallas, Russell is a good lead guard in such sets, though he will have to be better at scoring from the ball handler spot out of the PNR so that the Mavericks don't become one-dimensional in the half court.

Even better, if Russell can find his three-point shot again – or, at least, improve somewhat from last year's debacle from beyond the arc – he can be an even more effective player on the offensive end, and help Dallas regain its footing in a difficult Western Conference.