The Dallas Mavericks made a bold decision in the 2023 NBA Draft: They traded down from No. 10 to No. 12, traded away Davis Bertans, and selected Dereck Lively II from Duke. After initially thinking he would need to spend time in the G-League to develop, he immediately became an impact player for the Mavs.
His impact alongside Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving surprised many after a disappointing season at Duke. A former No. 1 recruit, he had high expectations in college but is reaching his potential in the NBA.
The athlete recently released its mock draft of the best NBA players age 21 or younger, and Lively may have been higher than you expected. Their goal was to put together the best possible team that could compete for a championship in five years.
As expected, Victor Wembanyama and Paolo Banchero were the first players taken off the board, followed by Alperen Sengun and Brandon Miller. Dereck Lively II from Dallas was selected fifth in this mock draft.
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Will Guillory said the following about the selection: “For the record, Cooper Flagg would definitely have been my pick here if he was eligible for this exercise. However, getting Lively is a pretty good consolation prize. The 6-foot-5, 235-pound center played a crucial role on a Mavericks team that won the Western Conference last season, and he doesn’t turn 21 until February. He has so much length and athleticism at the position, and he’s already a fantastic complement to Luka Doncic on offense as a lob threat and short-route passer. At the last draft, teams were open about their desire to find the next Lively.”
In this hypothetical case, Lively landed on a team with Banchero, Jonathan Kuminga, Scoot Henderson, Josh Giddey, Jeremy Sochan, Shaedon Sharpe and Zach Edey. This team is made up of many frontcourt players, but Lively stands out as one of the best among them.
In his rookie season, Lively averaged 8.8 PPG, 6.9 RPG and 1.4 BPG to help the Mavericks reach the NBA Finals. He also showed off his ability as a short-roll passer and flashed his future as a three-point shooter in the NBA Finals. His defensive versatility allows him to get on the perimeter and assert himself, and he’s a terror around the basket on both ends of the court. Dallas fans should be excited about his potential.
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