A lot of teams get together for pre-training camp camps these days, and you reportedly can count the Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks among them.
Per Marc Stein of The Stein Line, the Mavs conducted a minicamp in Los Angeles, and from the sounds of things, it was all basketball and bonding.
“Everything I heard about the mini-camp was that the on-court stuff was great, but maybe the off-court stuff was even better,” Stein said on the DLLS Mavs Podcast, via RealGM.
And yes, newcomer Klay Thompson was there, Stein added. Same goes for Kyrie Irving, who underwent surgery on his left hand last month. He has yet to be cleared for 5-on-5, so he just participated in a limited manner.
In all, 15 Mavs made the trip.
It’s a new day in Dallas, one where Irving and Luka Doncic proved they can carry a team to the Finals. Now, they have some veteran outside shooting in Thompson and a full year alongside relative newcomers P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford. Big man Dereck Lively II will also no longer be a rookie. He too has Finals experience.
Bonding sessions such as these don’t mean a whole lot to fans and the media, but they can do wonders for the players ahead of camp. No less than LeBron James is credited with starting these types of pre-camp out-of-town gatherings, back during his days with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Irving, of course, was on those teams.
The Mavericks are aiming to win a title, and hey, they got a shot last season. The goal is to take it a step further in this one.
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