With the Mavericks off to a 2-5 season start and looking especially sluggish on offense, something seemingly needed to change, and on Wednesday night it did: D’Angelo Russell was moved into the starting lineup as Dallas hosted New Orleans.
That of course wasn’t the most significant part of the news: It meant Klay Thompson coming off the bench for the first time in his two seasons as a Maverick.
Thompson, 35, has struggled to start the season, averaging 8.1 points, 31.8% shooting from the field and 26.2% from 3-point distance.
Certainly it could be argued that part of Thompson’s struggles have been due to not starting alongside a traditional playmaker. Cooper Flagg has been starting at point guard, but on Wednesday night he started at small forward.
Mavericks
So how did the new starting lineup work out? The Mavericks went scoreless for the game’s first 3:38 and fell behind 9-0.
Thompson entered the game with 5:06 left in the first quarter and Dallas trailing, 18-7. Barely 30 seconds later he swished a 3-pointer, then on Dallas’ next possession hit a step-back two-pointer from the wing.
Prior to Wednesday, Thompson had started in all 79 of his appearances as a Maverick. Prior to Wednesday, the last time he didn’t start was during the 2023-24 season with Golden State, when he stared in 63 of his 77 appearances.
Prior to that, he had played nine straight seasons as a Warrior without coming off the bench.
High-flying action: See photos of Cooper Flagg’s alley-oop, more from Mavs’ game vs. Pelicans
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