Mavericks already have a Klay Thompson problem before season even begins
With preseason now over and the Dallas Mavericks' 2025-26 regular season debut versus the San Antonio Spurs just days away, fans and analysts were able to gather some sort of the semblance of what this Mavericks team could look like over the last couple weeks, but it's unfortunate that one of fans' underlying suspicions in regard to one of Dallas' biggest weaknesses looks like it may come into fruition this season.
This is regarding Dallas' lackluster perimeter defense in their starting unit, as all signs are pointing toward Dallas starting 29-year-old D'Angelo Russell and 35-year-old Klay Thompson in their backcourt.
Heading into training camp, it was fairly unclear whether P.J. Washington or Thompson would earn the starting nod, but if Jason Kidd continues to stick with Thompson like he did in preseason, the Mavericks may have some trouble shutting down elite ball handlers and shot creators this season.
Early signs spell trouble for Mavericks' perimeter defense
While Russell has solid length at the point of attack and is fairly witty as a defender, his lack of lateral quickness and strength compared to other guards on defense has been a harping point from critics over the course of his career. Meanwhile, Thompson was once one of the best ball-stoppers in the entire league, but waning athleticism due to age and injury has made him less versatile defensively, even if he still has his moments where he anchors down and locks someone up.
While Dallas won three of their four preseason contests, they were playing against rotations that were primarily featuring third and fourth stringers in their three wins, as the only game they played that had any real juice to it was their loss to the Charlotte Hornets, but that was also easily their worst performance from a perimeter defense perspective.
The Hornets canned 16 3-pointers in that contest, 10 of which came from their primary initiators in Collin Sexton, Miles Bridges, and LaMelo Ball. Charlotte also got plenty of looks off offensive rebounds when Dallas failed to rotate on the perimeter, and Bridges and Ball were able to sneak past the backline to get all the way to the rim on multiple occasions.
This was obviously just one preseason game, but it was arguably the only time the Mavericks faced some real competition throughout preseason, and Russell and Thompson struggled mightily to hold down the point of attack in the contest.
The Mavericks can mitigate some of these struggles in their starting unit through the likes of Max Christie, Naji Marshall, and Caleb Martin off the bench, but this could be a natural weak point with Thompson and Russell looking to assume the majority of the minutes in Dallas' guard rotation until Kyrie Irving returns.
Someone like Dante Exum is being sorely missed right now for this very reason, as Exum is dealing with a knee issue and has an indefinite timetable to return as far as fans are concerned, so this issue could get exasperated worse than it actually is early in the season for the Mavericks, but we'll see soon enough with real action right around the corner.a
Rachael Kirkconnell Says She’s ‘Chronically Single’ After Matt James Split: ‘Someone Date Me!’
NEED TO KNOW
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Rachael Kirkconnell offered an update on her dating life during an appearance on the Oct. 16 episode of the
Extra Dirty podcast -
She explained that she hasn't been dating since her split from Matt James earlier this year and revealed she needs to feel an emotional connection to someone more than physical attraction
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Kirkconnell and James met on his season of The Bachelor in 2021, where she won his final rose
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Rachael Kirkconnell is still navigating the single life after her split from
The reality star, 29, has been single for almost a year, but she admitted that it hasn’t been easy to jump back into the dating pool. During an appearance on influencer Hallie Batchelder’s
“Hi, someone date me!” she joked, looking straight at the camera. “No, I’ve been so chronically single. I haven’t been on a single date. I’m not on the apps. I’m not judging anyone who is on the apps, but I just don’t think that would work well for me. But honestly, if it gets to a point, I might have to jump on them.”
“We were talking about dry spells last night,” Kirkconnell said, noting both she and Batchelder have gone through long dry spells over the past year.
“Dry spells are important though, for self-discovery,” Batchelder, 26, chimed in, but Kirkconnell didn’t know if she agreed.
“I’m like, okay, I’m discovered,” she quipped. “I’m just lonely. I just, I don’t know, [want to] at least flirt with someone and get excited about someone and have a crush. I think I like gay guys. That’s the problem. I think I have a problem. I think I like people who don't like me back, or can't like me back. Something’s wrong up here.”
The Bachelor winner went on to suggest she might be “demi-sexual,” a term that refers to someone whose sexual attraction to a person depends on their emotional bond. However, she said she didn't think she is attracted to women, so she wasn't sure if the term applied to her.
“I just feel like I do have to have an emotional connection with someone,” Kirkconnell explained. “I can’t just go home with anyone. I have to feel safe and comfortable with them and be emotionally invested at least in a way that I could see us dating or I at least have a crush on them because of — I don't know, it's not like a physical attraction I guess — personality?”
While Kirkconnell is able to find people physically attractive to her, that doesn’t lead to her wanting any deeper interaction until she knows more about them.
“I think they're really hot, but I don't care after that because they could still be a terrible person or have the worst personality ever, and that would make me not want to sleep with them because that totally turns me off,” she shared. “I guess their attraction only gets them so far for me.”
Jamie McCarthy/Variety/Getty
Rachael Kirkconnell (left) and Matt JamesNever miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Earlier this year, Kirkconnell and James, 33, who met on his season of The Bachelor in 2021, called it quits and sent shockwaves through their fandom.
James announced the news on
Weeks after the split, Kirkconnell told PEOPLE she was "surprised" by the breakup.
“The whole thing's just been really weird because one, I didn't expect anything at all," she said. "Then, two, just the way he went about it and the way it was so public was really hard to deal with and go through the motions. It was one of those things where I'm not registering.”
She added that she had been leaning on her friends and family to cope.
"They know how to be there for me, and it's been a lot easier knowing that I have people in my corner and that I'm not alone, even though it can feel like it sometimes," Kirkconnell said.
