Living up to his name in more ways than one, Dereck Lively II has succeeded in breathing new life into the Dallas Mavericks’ already-potent offensive attack. Tethered closely with his All-Star teammate, the 2023 first-rounder puts the symbiotic, league-leading pick-and-roll partnership to work, faking a ball screen just effectively enough to slip behind a pair of Oklahoma City Thunder defenders before rolling to the rim for a hanging, acrobatic poster jam over a fellow first-year big. On pace to produce NBA history’s highest field goal percentage for a player in Year One, Lively’s box score in the loss on December 2, 2023 reflected as such with 20 points — on a perfect nine of nine shooting — along with 16 rebounds, seven blocks, and one steal. · Dec 3, 2023