Dallas Mavericks News: Rebounding Struggles, Lack Of Help For Tyson Chandler Behind Underwhelming Four-Game Stretch

This wasn't how the new-look Dallas Mavericks were supposed to look. In four games against solid - but not elite - competition, the Mavs went 1-3 and needed overtime to beat the Sacramento Kings. Dallas shot between 41 and 44% in all four games, which wasn't very impressive, but it was the struggles on the glass that really doomed the Mavs.

In the first game of that stretch - a 108-95 home loss to the Detroit Pistons - Tyson Chandler got absolutely no help on the glass. The team's second-leading rebounder was PG Rajon Rondo, and while Rondo is an excellent rebounder for his position, that just isn't good enough. The Mavs were dominated on the inside by Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond, who combined for 37 of Detroit's 60 rebounds on the night. The Pistons had 18 offensive rebounds to the Mavs' 9.

Next, Dallas traveled to the Staples Center, where the Clippers blew them out by 20. The rebounding disparity wasn't as severe - Dallas had 40 to the Clippers' 47 - but again, no one stepped up to help Tyson Chandler on the boards. The OT win over Sacramento saw them lean almost entirely on Chandler, who had 17 boards, and the Mavs were fortunate to win on a night they got out-rebounded by 15.

The loss to Denver was more of the same - Kenneth Faried, Wilson Chandler and C Jusuf Nurkic all pitched in for the Nuggets, and J.J. Hickson had 8 boards off the bench. With Chandler resting, the lack of rebounding was even more obvious, and Richard Jefferson led the Mavs with 6 boards on the night. It doesn't matter who's resting and who the Mavs are playing against - that just isn't good enough.

From watching these games, it's immediately clear that the Mavericks need help in the frontcourt. No bench players hauled in more than 5 rebounds in the four games in question, and even the starters failed to pull their weight. If this team wants to realistically contend in the West against teams like Golden State and Portland, who emphasize team rebounding, they need to change things up in a hurry.