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3 Areas where the Dallas Mavericks need to improve in the 2nd half of the season

The Dallas Mavericks are looking to secure homecourt advantage for the playoffs
The Dallas Mavericks are looking to secure homecourt advantage for the playoffs

The Dallas Mavericks entered the 2019-20 season hoping to contend for one of the final playoff spots in the Western Conference, and a first postseason appearance since 2016 already looks virtually guaranteed following a better than expected first half of the season.

As we approach the 2020 All-Star Weekend, the Mavs sit fifth in the West with a 29-18 record - and are just 2.5 games back from the Utah Jazz in the fourth seed. Much of Dallas' success is owed to the MVP-level performances of Luka Doncic - and Rick Carlisle's team are in with a realistic shot of securing homecourt advantage for a potentially tough first-round matchup in the playoffs.

Nevertheless, while they have surpassed expectations, the Mavs still have room to grow, and here we will take a look at the three areas where they need to improve in the second half of the season.


#3 Free Throw Accuracy

Luka Doncic has struggled from the free-throw line since the turn of the year
Luka Doncic has struggled from the free-throw line since the turn of the year

The Mavericks are averaging 23.7 trips to the free-throw line (10th best in the NBA), although they are collectively shooting just 76.6 percent from the charity stripe. While not close to being the lowest number in the NBA, a quick look down the Mavs roster suggests that the team should also be among the top 10 teams in free-throw percentage, and management will be eager to see an improvement in the coming weeks.

While Seth Curry (88.3%) and Maxi Kleber (88.3%) have been reliable, the star duo of Doncic (76.3%) and Porzingis (73.9%) have been inconsistent. Doncic's accuracy has further plummeted to 66.7 percent this month and with the Slovenian making nine trips to the free-throw line per night - this is an area that needs sorting out as quickly as possible.

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