Zaza Pachulia Is Dallas Mavericks’ Most Pleasant Surprise At 2015-16 Halfway Point

Many predicted that the Dallas Mavericks would enter a rebuilding season following last season’s failed experiment with Rajon Rondo. Chandler Parsons began this season injured and the Mavericks didn’t find a player who would eventually replace Dirk Nowitzki as the star of the team.

To make matters worse, the team the struck out and couldn’t even manage to land DeAndre Jordan. Jordan isn’t even a borderline All-Star and the Mavericks couldn’t keep him away from the Los Angeles Clippers. But a few offseason moves have saved the Mavericks and led them to currently be the sixth-best team in the Western Conference. And the most important move has been a trade for Zaza Pachulia.

The Mavericks acquired Pachulia from the Milwaukee Bucks for a future second-round pick. The team desperately needed a center after losing Tyson Chandler to the Phoenix Suns. After all, it wouldn’t be good for the Mavericks if they had ended up relying on JaVale McGee on a consistent basis. Pachulia had been a solid backup center for the majority of his 12 years in the league, so it was a reasonable choice.

Luckily for the Mavericks, it turned out to be a great choice. Pachulia has been averaging 10.4 points (highest since the 2006-07 season) and a career-high 10.7 rebounds per game. Although it isn’t much of an improvement, Pachulia has also helped to improve the Mavericks’ defense as well. The Mavericks were the 25th best defense last season and now the team is 17th best in terms of points allowed.

Pachulia also has the 11th best plus-minus among centers. For a center who has played primarily as a backup, that is pretty good. Pachulia has done exactly what is needed while playing with a power forward like Nowitzki. Nowitzki isn’t the best rim protector or the best physical enforcer, but Pachulia fulfills that role.

Pachulia’s play has been so good that he earned more All-Star votes than forward Draymond Green. Other factors may have played into the amount of votes Pachulia got, but averaging a double-double is no easy feat. Maybe the coaches will show some love to Pachulia and vote him in as an All-Star reserve.