Justin Jackson was acquired by the Dallas Mavericks last season. The Mavericks traded away their biggest contract in Harrison Barnes, and in returned acquired Jackson and Zach Randolph. Randolph was released, making Jackson the only remaining piece from the trade. Jackson is no star, but he has shown improvement and fits a role that the Mavericks could use. He clearly deserves for minutes.
Justin Jackson Deserves More Minutes
Statistics
Jackson has only appeared in nine games this year. His average of under 12 minutes a game seems like a crime. In that short amount of time, he’s shooting 44 percent from the field and 41 percent from three. He’s efficient too, scoring five points a game and grabbing two rebounds while only turning it over 0.2 times per game.
He was given more minutes last season in Dallas, averaging 18 a game. In this time he scored eight points per game in 48 percent shooting from the field and 37 percent from three.
Rotation Fit – Justin Jackson Versus Tim Hardaway
Dorian Finney-Smith has taken the starting small forward place to himself. He’s been both a strong defender and offensive presence. Finney-Smith is improving game-by-game, and he’ll remain in the starting line-up.
Besides the former Florida Gator, Tim Hardaway sees an abundance of minutes at small forward. He had a solid game versus the Golden State Warriors earlier this week, but that stands out in his list of poor games. Hardaway is not a reliable defender, and he takes too many uncalled for shots. He’s had a strong scoring record in the past, but it’s time for the coaching staff to realize that that was the past and his teammates are better options. Hardaway still deserves a niche on the Mavericks, but he cannot continue to take minutes from Jackson.
The only way to get Jackson more minutes at small forward, however, is to cut Hardaway’s minutes. Seth Curry, Jalen Brunson, and Delon Wright are too valuable in a rotation of guards for Hardaway to cut into their minutes.
Jackson can also play sometimes at power forward, however. Kristaps Porzingis is still clearly finding his groove from his injury and can’t be expected to play 35-40 minutes every game. Maxi Kleber sees minutes behind both Porzingis and Dwight Powell, and with Boban Marjanovic not seeing much time, perhaps Kleber can play more minutes at the five while Jackson takes over the duties at the four.
Work Ethic
According to Eddie Sefko of the Mavericks, Jackson put on 20 pounds of muscle this summer.
Justin Jackson, having added 20 pounds of muscle this off-season, knocking down threes this morning at Mavericks’ practice facility. pic.twitter.com/fISQh9OqCL
— Eddie Sefko (@ESefko) August 13, 2019
It’s clear Jackson was prepping for a bigger role this year. Last season he found his niche as a three-point shooter off the bench, but his muscle gain was clearly to find more versatility in both forward positions.
The Mavericks are in a great spot and doing better than many anticipated. Truth be told, one of the only hinderances has been Hardaway’s time on the floor. Jackson will bring in dependable shooting and new facets of his game waiting to be put on display. The time to give him more minutes is now.
Main Photo
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