NBA Power Rankings: What exactly is wrong with the Clippers?

27. Dallas Mavericks

The weirdest thing in the NBA last week was the Mavericks blowing out the Bucks. It follows a trend of the Mavs winning games against better teams they probably shouldn’t be. Remember when they beat the Wizards earlier this year?

This team, though, is still pretty bad. Dennis Smith Jr. is really fun, but he struggled against Eric Bledsoe and Malcolm Brogdon Saturday with a 5-point, 2-assist and 4-turnover performance. Dallas, though, is happy with where he’s at.

“A month in, overall, progress is very good,” coach Rick Carlisle said after a game vs. the Bucks, per The Washington Post. “Last night was a struggle, but there’s going to be some nights like that. The important thing is he understands the importance of bouncing back. We point out the adjustments that need to be made and he’s ready to go the next night. These three games we are in the middle of, all against high-level opponents, teams that can defend well, teams that have length, the adjustments have got to be made, and he’ll do it. He’s smart. He’s done it every time we’ve challenged him so far.”

Smith turned 20 on Sunday, so he’s in a good spot. And does anything but his progress really matter to this team? It’s clear that he’s the future of this group and it’d be a miracle for Dallas to claw itself into playoff contention later on in the year. That makes this year all about Smith highlights and lottery balls.