In a game that was expected to be about Victor Wembanyama, Dereck Lively ended up stealing the show with his big-man presence. Luka Doncic wasn't able to keep his language in check when he spoke about Lively's debut performance.
The star said that the rookie played "f*****g amazing" and then apologized for using that language on national television. The Mavs owner joked with reporters about how Lively was a "number one pick" after the game was over.
The rookie ended up with 16 points for the entire game and only missed one shot. He ended up with some key putbacks that allowed the Maverick to take a four-point lead with less than 6 minutes left. Additionally, Lively ended up with 10 rebounds in this game.
While Wembanyama didn't play horribly in this game, foul trouble only allowed him to play 23 minutes for the entire game. He made up for his foul trouble in the fourth quarter but he was unable to pull through the victory for the Spurs. Lively was the big story of the game and it seems like the Mavericks have found a big to fit into their rotation.
What is the ceiling for Lively in his first season with Mavericks?
To be quite honest, this is a team that is missing real center. The Mavericks do have Dwight Powell but he isn't someone that the team can depend on for 32+ minutes. If Lively is able to keep up his play from the beginning parts of the season, he may be a guy that the team can depend on. This would allow Dallas to not have to play Maxi Kleber at the center position.
It's only one game so far for the Mavericks but things are looking up for Lively's future NBA career. If he is able to have more games like this, he will certainly get a lot of more praise from Luka and Cuban.
