5 Things which went wrong for Dallas Mavericks in the 2020-21 NBA season

#3 The Dallas Mavericks missed Seth Curry's efficiency

Seth Curry with the Dallas Mavericks in 2020

Seth Curry averaged 12.4 points per game with 49.5/45.2/82.5 shooting splits for the Dallas Mavericks in the 2019-20 NBA season. However, he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers on November 18th, 2020, a month prior to the start of the current NBA season.

In exchange for Curry, the Dallas Mavericks received Josh Richardson and Tyler Bey. After a full season since that trade, we can say with assurance that the Dallas Mavericks did not improve the team with that deal.

While Richardson brought more size to the Mavs, Curry's three-point shooting efficiency is something that any team in the league would miss. The 30-year-old helped the Philadelphia 76ers obtain the first seed in the East while averaging 12.5 points with 46.7/45/89.6 shooting splits.

On the other end, Richardson averaged 12 points per game, which is not too far from Curry's record. He also played two games more than Curry's 57. However, Richardson was not as efficient as Curry and made only 33% of his threes in the regular season.

In the NBA Playoffs, Curry was on fire for the 76ers, averaging 18 points per game with 58/51/79 shooting splits. Richardson, on the other hand, could only average 13.4 minutes per game for the Mavs in the series against the LA Clippers.

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#2 Kristaps Porzingis' difficult year

Kristaps Porzingis #6 of the Dallas Mavericks shoots the ball

Kristaps Porzingis' season started with him carrying a knee injury from the 2020 NBA Playoffs. He made his season debut only in the Dallas Mavericks' 10th game of the campaign.

Porzingis averaged a solid 20 points and 8.9 rebounds per game with 47/37/85 shooting splits in 43 regular-season games. However, both his chances on offense and percentages fell down in the Playoffs series against the LA Clippers.

Porzingis only averaged 13 points and five rebounds per game in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, while making only 29% of his three-pointers. The 25-year-old also mustered just 10 shots per game in the postseason as opposed to 15.9 attempts per game in the regular season.

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#1 Luka Doncic's and Kristaps Porzingis' alleged chemistry issues

Kristaps Porzingis #6 and Luka Doncic #77 of the Dallas Mavericks

Porzingis' chances on offense dropped in the NBA Playoffs as explained before. This seemed to be directly connected to Luka Doncic, the team's offensive leader, primary ball-handler and decision-maker.

If Porzingis was not getting enough touches and was reportedly frustrated by that, then the anger might very well have been directed towards the Slovenian superstar.

Reports that suggest Doncic and Porzingis did not get along in the Dallas Mavericks' locker room might just show what the glaring issues for the side were in 2020-21. It remains to be seen if they can continue together for the upcoming campaign, though the Dallas Mavericks might look in a different direction. Reports have even suggested that the team is in the hunt for Kawhi Leonard during free agency.

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