What is the Dallas Mavericks' Starting Lineup?
The Mavs' starting five is currently in flux because of injuries, but they are deep and are getting more than they likely expected from Dante Exum, who spent his last two seasons between Serbia and Spain. Listed below is what the Mavericks starting lineup will be at full strength.
Point Guard: Luka Doncic
A two-time EuroLeague MVP, Doncic is a triple-double machine who currently ranks second in the league in scoring, fourth in assists, and 30th in rebounds. A magician as a playmaker and known for hitting clutch shots late in games, he averaged a career-high 32.4 points per game last season and has posted five triple-doubles this season.
Shooting Guard: Kyrie Irving
The 31-year-old spent his first six seasons in Cleveland and won an NBA championship, then played in Boston where he was a fan favorite before leaving as a free agent. He signed with the Brooklyn Nets to team up with his good friend Kevin Durant along with James Harden, but that superstar trio crashed and burned last season and he was dealt to Dallas. He is a career 23.4 points per-game scorer. Many consider him the best ballhandler in the entire NBA.
Small Forward: Josh Green
Currently sidelined by a sprained elbow, Green is a 23-year-old was selected out of Arizona with the 18th overall pick in 2020. He has started 34 of his 184 career games and averaged a career-best 9.1 points per game last season, and he is the least productive member of Dallas' starting five.
Power Forward: Grant Williams
The 22nd overall pick of the 2019 draft, Williams spent four seasons with the Celtics before leaving as a free agent and signing with Dallas. Here, he is working on becoming a better 3-point shooter and a more reliable scorer who will need to manufacture his own points through hustle and offensive rebounding put-backs. Williams does not get many plays called for him, but he is a solid defender and a "glue guy."
Update: Derrick Jones Jr. has recently taken over as the starter.
Center: Dereck Lively
The 19-year-old from Duke was the 12th overall pick of the 2023 draft and Dallas acquired him in a draft night deal with Oklahoma City. He has been spotty, but his good games have been very good games, including a 9-for-9, 20-point, 16 rebound performance with seven blocked shots against Chicago on Dec. 2. He has attempted 42 shots through the first 13 days of December and only missed nine of them.
Who is on the Dallas Mavericks’ Bench?
Because of a rash of early-season injuries, the Mavs' bench players have often been their starters. Injuries have impacted the Mavs more than any other West team aside from Memphis, but Dallas has gotten through it quite nicely -- a testament to the work done by general manager Nico Harrison in building a roster with interchangeable parts surrounding the two stars, Doncic and Irving.
Exum, Curry, Prosper, and Holmes were added in a busy offseason that did not make a lot of national headlines but filled a ton of gaps that were evident last season when the Mavs stumbled to a 38-44 record and missed the playoffs. Curry, Holmes, and Exum have been searching their entire careers for a team that would fit their skill set, and so far, so good in terms of all three fitting in well in Dallas. The depth chart has already seen substantial minutes which could prove to be key in a deep playoff run.
Who Is the Mavericks’ 6th Man?
Tim Hardaway Jr. has been with the Mavericks since being acquired in a midseason trade with the Knicks in 2019 and has averaged between 14.2 and 17.7 points per game over that span, about half of it coming off the bench. His improvement this season has him listed with +280 odds to win the Sixth Man Award, second only behind Austin Reaves of the Lakers.
Get to Know the Dallas Mavericks Front Office
Let's get one thing straight: Mark Cuban makes the calls here. Cuban will continue to do so even after he sells a majority interest in the team because he had that written into the sale agreement. He is the epitome of a hands-on owner.
| Position | Staff Member |
| General Manager | Nico Harrison |
| Head Coach | Jason Kidd |
| Associate Head Coach | Darrell Armstrong |
Who Is the Mavericks' Head Coach?
Kidd is a Hall of Fame player turned coach. Prior to leading the Mavs, he also coached the Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks and was an assistant coach on the 2020 Los Angeles Lakers team that won the NBA championship. He racked up 17,529 points and 11,801 assists over a 20-year playing career.
Who Is the Mavericks’ General Manager?
Nico Harrison is the Mavs' GM. Harrison is a former Nike executive who spent 19 years at the company and grew close to several NBA players before he moved into a front office role with the Mavs in 2021.
Dallas Mavericks FAQs
Entrepreneur Mark Cuban is the owner of the Dallas Mavericks. Cuban has owned the team since purchasing it from Ross Perot Jr. in January 2000.
Dirk Nowitzki, Alex English, Jason Kidd, and Steve Nash are Hall of Famers who spent large portions of their careers (Nowitzki never played for anyone else) with the Mavericks.
With Dante Exum and Josh Green sidelined, the Mavs most recent starting lineup featured Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, Tim Hardaway Jr., Derrick Jones Jr., and Dereck Lively II.
Luka Doncic is leading the Mavericks in scoring, averaging 33.6 points per game.
At full strength, the Mavs' starting five lineup is Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic, Dereck Lively, Derrick Jones Jr., and Dante Exum.
Author
Chris Sheridan is a veteran NBA writer who has been covering the league since 1992, with a specialty in international basketball after being credentialed for every Olympics since 1996 in Atlanta. He has been covering sports gambling since 2018.
