Is Dereck Lively II the steal of the Draft?

This offseason Dallas drafted Cason Wallace, a Defensive Minded Guard out of Kentucky, who originally went to Richardson High School, only a 20-minute drive from the American Airlines Center. 3 Picks later the OKC Thunder drafted Dereck Lively II out of Duke, a 7'1 Rim protecting center, one of which we would end up trading Cason Wallace for. Unfortunate we couldn't keep one of the best backcourt defenders in the 2023 Draft class and a hometown kid, but Dereck Lively was the #1 Priority for the Mavericks.

Dereck Lively is the first real, GOOD Mavericks center since Tyson Chandler in 2011. Of course, Tyson came back in 2015, and we had a Declining Deandre Jordan and JaVale McGee, but this has been the first real rolling, rim-protecting big in recent Mavs history. Of course, we had KP but we all know how that went.

Looking at this draft class the elephant in the room is Victor Wembanyama, the greatest prospect in the history of the NBA. Chet Holmgren, the new Kevin Durant. And Brandon Miller, an absolute demon on the defensive side of the court. But a sneaky good player to come out of this draft is DL2, especially being drafted 13th.

Dereck Lively has proven to be the Mavs saving grace in the center department, and with the recent addition to Daniel Gafford, this is the first time in recent memory that the Mavericks don't have the worst center rotation in the NBA.

As for how the new rotations are going to work, I think we will end up keeping Dwight Powell until he retires as a veteran presence to help develop DL2 and Gafford, as they are both young players, being 19 and 25 respectively. As for Maxi Kleber, he can provide some great depth at the 4 as a defender and spot-up shooter. Maxi is a sneaky good 1-5 defender, he slides his feet keeps his hands up, and is quick enough to keep up with the guards.

DL2 has been the best draft pick since Luka for the Mavs FO, and this kid can only get better. MFFLs are looking forward to his return soon as he is still out recovering from a nose surgery. He has officially been listed out for the Saturday game vs. OKC, but it looks like Gafford and PJ will be available. The Mavs future looks bright in the center department and us fans are more than ready to see this season develop.