GAME 45: DAL (24-21) @ POR (21-22) | 123-140 loss

[KillerLeft]

If I had to guess, I think Dinwiddie best in an attacking role.    But he is not a guy to run an offense...especially one without other creators. 

Yes, I think he's a 2-guard who can handle the ball better than average for that position. He's not a PG and shouldn't be the lead ball-handler in any lineup. 

I've seen enough to know his catch and shoot game is much, much better than we expected when he came here. Maybe that's the Luka effect, maybe it's growth from Dinwiddie, probably it's both. So, we know he can play offense next to a ball-handler, and he's obviously skilled enough to be that secondary guy. He can bring the ball up, set up plays to give Luka a break, etc, etc. 

Not sure how to reconcile the defense - that's bad. 

If I'm the Mavs, I'm looking to actually replace Brunson. D'Angelo Russell excites me, but there are others. You put Dinwiddie in a rotation where he's always on the floor with either Luka or this newcomer and you might have last year's Dinwiddie back. Maybe not, because there's no way they're getting someone as good as Brunson. Lowry, LaVert, Russell, LaVine...all of these names make some sense when you examine the problem through this lens, imho, though some much more than others. 

And frankly (this is where I'll lose most of you), I think Luka/actual playmaker/THJ is far, far superior to Luka/Dinwiddie/THJ, so if it were me I wouldn't JUST be shopping THJ. I'd be fine with substituting Dinwiddie in any deal that netted me a real, live playmaker who could play off ball (including moving it, not just shooting) and also run the offense (which includes more than just some iso ability). Sure, you'd only have two if you moved Dinwiddie for that guy, but from my seat you only have one right now, so that's still a ton of potential improvement.