Mavs' Move With Dirk Will Pay Off Come Playoff Time
Kevin Hageland | @othankKevin
DALLAS, Texas (105.3 THE FAN) - Fans of the Dallas Mavericks are hyped up about the team's 9-3 start to the season and that's understandable.
However, there is another reason for Mavs' fans to be far more excited.
And that's Dirk Nowitzki. Specifically, the number of minutes Nowitzki has played through the first 12 games of the season.
Of course it's still early, but thus far Nowitzki is averaging 27.5 minutes per game. That is way down from his career average of 35.8 minutes, but let's get serious – Nowitzki hasn't been playing that many minutes since Dallas won its lone championship in 2010-11. So, let's just compare how much Nowitzki is playing this season compared to last year.
Last season, Nowitzki played 32.9 minutes per game. If you have a short memory (or don't want to just look up to the previous paragraph), this season he is at 27.5.
The difference of 5.4 minutes per game might not seem huge, but look at the bigger picture.
That translates to 443 fewer minutes played over the span of a season. Still not impressed? OK, that equals 16 fewer gamer played than last season.
16!
To put that into context, the Mavs played in 17 games to reach their first-ever NBA Finals in 2005-06.
Fewer games means fresher legs come the playoffs.
But, you might be saying to yourself (or yelling at some random stranger, I don't know you) – "it's so early in the season, things could change."
Alright, let's say Nowitzki increases his average minutes played by two (to 29.5). That still equates to 10 games fewer played than last year. And it's not like Nowitzki has to even miss any games to reach that milestone. In fact, the argument can be made that playing fewer minutes has already shown to rejuvenate Nowitzki, seeing as how he is playing more efficiently than he has in some time and is on pace to reach new career highs in overall field-goal percentage and from beyond the arc.
With that all in mind, what if Nowitzki decreases his average minutes played by 2 (to 25.5)?
Now, this is where things get really fun.
That would save Nowitzki the equivalent of 607 minutes of wear and tear on his legs. That equals 22 fewer games played.
22!
Want to put that in historical perspective? Well, it only took the Mavs 21 playoff games to win their first NBA Championship in 2010-11.
Does this mean Dallas is ready to march to another title?
Of course not. At least I'm not ready to make that proclamation yet.
It does, however, illustrate how the Mavs have continued to win (they are on pace for 61 regular-season victories) while also lowering the work load on the man that is still their best player. And the prospect of a fresh Nowitzki in the playoffs in search of his second NBA Championship is a scenario that should excite all Mavericks' fans.
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