For fans, this entire season has been a dream. The past two months have been even better, with the Mavericks exceeding all expectations to get just after surviving the Western Conference bloodbath in impressive fashion. Only one thing has given Dallas reason for concern: the gruesome shoulder injury to Maxi Kleber that looked to have cost him the rest of the playoffs.
Well, even that injury seems to be going right for the Mavericks, as Kleber has been upgraded to questionable for Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals, nearly guaranteeing a return for the NBA Finals. Dallas has been doing just fine without their 32-year-old forward, going 11-4 of Dereck Lively, Daniel Gafford, and PJ Washington to makeup for Kleber's absence. However, adding him to the mix will only make Dallas more versatile and dangerous in the Finals, should they advance.
Kleber Is an Excellent Two-Way Forward As mentioned previously, Dereck Lively and Daniel Gafford have done an excellent job at the center position throughout these playoffs, but Kleber brings a unique skill set that allows Dallas to play a different style than the other players enable. Kleber can play both the four in big lineups and the five in small lineups because of his elite versatility. The veteran forward is a high-level rim protector but can also switch onto ballhandlers on the perimeter, allowing the Mavericks to play him at the five against five-out offenses like the .
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