Mavs Notes: Williams, Powell, Medical Staff, Camp

With Kyrie Irving injured, fourth-year guard Brandon Williams is expected to take on a larger ball-handling role with the Mavericks behind D’Angelo Russell.

Williams has played the last two seasons with Dallas, averaging 8.3 points and 2.3 assists on 40.0% from deep last season in 33 games. The 25-year-old played two games for the Mavs this offseason at Summer League, where he averaged 16.0 points and 4.5 assists, and his play was sufficient to draw the praise of head coach Jason Kidd.

“I thought at the end of the summer, he was playing at a high level,” Kidd said, as relayed by Mike Curtis of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). “When he’s healthy, he’s a problem.”

The latter part of that quote has been a question mark recently, as Kidd announced on October 1 that Williams had sustained a hamstring strain that would keep him out for at least a week. When asked about his status for Saturday’s preseason game against the Hornets, Williams said that he’s “playing it day-by-day,” according to Curtis (via Twitter).

As for what Kidd expects when Williams returns to the floor, the head coach said:

“Growth as always. Understanding time and score, who hasn’t gotten a shot, how are we playing on the offensive end. When we have the ball, you’re a leader so some of that leadership role is something that he’s going to have to show us again this year.”

We have more from the Mavericks:

• Dwight Powell is the longest-tenured Maverick, having played the last 10.5 seasons in Dallas after a quick five-game start to his career in Boston. Having seen many iterations of the team, he’s excited about the season to come, writes Eddie Sekfo for NBA.com. “It’s one thing to be talented,” Powell said. “But you got to have that competitive edge and want to compete on every possession. Our ability so far to be able to do that in practice is a great sign for what’s to come in the season ahead. That’s something I’m very excited about.” With Daniel Gafford injured, he will likely play more minutes at the start of the season than when the team is fully healthy, but regardless of the situation, he’s ready to contribute any way he can. “I try my best,” he said. “Try my best to help any way I can, be a spark where I can and lead where I can. And find ways to help us be successful. That role’s going to change throughout the year. You just got to be ready for the opportunities.”
• After facing a slew of injuries last season, most notably to Anthony Davis, Luka Doncic, and Irving, the Mavs overhauled their medical staff this season, writes Curtis. Curtis notes that last year’s team was one of the NBA’s most injured, losing 444 total man games. To turn that trend around, the Mavs promoted Jana Austin from assistant athletic trainer to head athletic trainer and hired Geoff Puls from the Bulls as their head of strength and performance. They also let go of Dionne Calhoun, who had been with the team for 21 years. Johann Bilsborough, who was at the heart of an in-depth article last season detailing the turmoil within the Mavs’ health and performance team, will oversee the staff for the second straight year.
• One of the changes the Mavericks will have to deal with, especially while Irving recuperates, is navigating a team that will be more egalitarian and rely less on a ball-dominant guard like Doncic, Sekfo writes. “In this league or any league as a coach, you got to be able to pivot with the roster you have,” Kidd said about the adjustment. “This is a different roster than I’ve had in the past. When you have players that I’ve had, you play to their strengths. This team is different. So to be able to be big and play with that type of pace is to our advantage.” Kidd noted that players like Russell and Klay Thompson will likely benefit from the team’s emphasis on pushing the pace.