The Mavericks rookie bounced back from a rough World Cup qualifying debut, but his uneven weekend reinforced how little margin for error Dallas has at guard.
Sergio de Larrea suited up for Spain twice over the weekend in World Cup qualifying, and the two performances said as much about the Dallas Mavericks roster as they did about the rookie.
De Larrea's outing against Portugal on Aug. 28 was one to forget. In 12 minutes, he did not score, missing his only shot attempt, and finished with three turnovers against two assists and a minus-20 rating in Spain's 95-89 loss. His efficiency rating for the game was minus-1.
Against Greece on Monday, de Larrea scored nine points on 3-of-5 shooting, going a perfect 3-for-3 from 3-point range while adding two rebounds and an assist in 11 minutes. Spain lost again, 108-106, but the shooting touch that made him a first-round pick was on display.
Across the two games, he averaged 4.5 points, 1.0 rebound and 1.5 assists in 11.2 minutes, shooting 50 percent from the field and 75 percent from 3-point range. The concerning number is the five turnovers in 22 total minutes, a rate worth watching from a 20-year-old still finding his footing in a bigger role for Spain.
None of this should be read as an indictment. The bounce-back performance showed the poise that has followed him since he broke into the EuroLeague as a teenager, and he was excellent in Las Vegas over the summer, finishing as the leader in assists per game while running the offense for Dallas.
But the two performances underline something the Mavericks should be paying attention to. The gap between promising and ready is real, and Dallas is currently built as though it does not exist.
The Mavericks have three guards on the roster. Kyrie Irving is returning from a torn ACL at 34 years old. Marcus Sasser arrives from Detroit after never holding a consistent rotation spot. De Larrea is a rookie who has yet to play an NBA regular-season game. That is not a rotation. It is a plan that requires everything to go right.
Consider what happens if Irving needs rest on either end of one of Dallas's 16 back-to-backs or misses time entirely. The Mavericks would be leaning on de Larrea for meaningful minutes before he has had a chance to acclimate. The Portugal performance is exactly the kind of night that happens to young guards in unfamiliar environments, and it would happen more often against NBA defenses.
The alternative is asking a rookie to carry weight he has not earned yet, which serves neither the player nor the team. De Larrea's ceiling is worth protecting. He needs runway to develop, and right now Dallas has him positioned to be needed immediately.
Training camp opens in a matter of weeks. The Mavericks still have time to give themselves a margin for error.
