As many NBA teams have started to find their groove through the first quarter of the 2016-2017 season, the Dallas Mavericks have struggled to even keep five healthy players on the court.
The Mavs have an NBA-worst 3-13 record, and injuries to key players such as Dirk Nowitzki and Deron Williams have done nothing to help their cause.
The one positive to the tumultuous start?
The coaching staff’s ability to evaluate young talent with a thin roster.
And that starts with former Florida star Dorian Finney-Smith.
The two-time second-team All-Southeastern Conference forward went undrafted after his last year at Florida in 2015-2016 when he led the team in both points (14.7) and rebounds (8.3).
After signing a summer deal with Dallas, Finney-Smith has stuck with the team as an undrafted rookie. Now, with the Mavericks’ piling injuries, he has started eight games.
Finney-Smith has modest averages of 4.0 points and 1.9 rebounds per contest in 17.5 minutes per game.
While those aren’t eye-popping statistics, the Mavs must see potential in the 23-year-old as a forward who can play sound defense and space the floor.
Around the NBA:
The summer of 2016 saw the NBA salary cap increase by a significant amount, with role players and superstars alike getting mega-deals never before seen in the league.
Lucrative contracts have been signed, money has been handed out in bucket-tons and many players have found new homes.
But some players, including former Gators, have struggled to find their strides to start the year.
Former Florida center Al Horford has been solid while on the court with his new team, the Boston Celtics. He’s averaged 14.7 points and 2.6 blocks per game, exceeding his career averages of 14.3 and 1.2, respectively.
However, injuries have restrained his impact. He has been limited to just seven games while dealing with a concussion, which the NBA has been very careful with as of late.
Horford’s former UF teammate, Joakim Noah, also found a new home in the northeast, signing a 4-year, $72 million deal with the New York Knicks.
The big man has rebounded well and uses his uncanny ability as a center to find open teammates consistently, but can’t find opportunities to score himself.
The 31-year-old has averaged 4.1 points per game in 14 appearances. If the season ended today, that would be a career low, and nearly two points lower than his rookie average of 6.6.
The Knicks sit at 8-8, and their 18th-ranked offense could use a jolt from their nine-year veteran center.
Meanwhile, the Memphis Grizzlies are faring well without their freshly signed former Gator.
Forward Chandler Parsons has only been able to suit up six times through the Grizzlies’ first 17 games while dealing with knee issues, but the team has still won seven out of its last eight contests and sit at fourth in the Western Conference at 11-6.
Still, Memphis would like to have back the sixth-year forward, who boasts career averages of 14.2 points and a .378 three-point percentage, especially with a $95 million contract looming over his head.
Contact Skyler Lebron at slebron@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @skylerlebron.
Dallas Mavericks' Dorian Finney-Smith (10) takes a shot over Orlando Magic's Serge Ibaka, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
