Mavericks' Maxi Kleber Returns to Full Practice After Ankle Injury: 'Great Being Back on the Court'
Mavericks' Maxi Kleber fully returns to practice after ankle injury, trending positively ahead of season opener vs. Spurs: "Great being back on the court."
DALLAS — After being sidelined for all of preseason due to a left ankle sprain, Maxi Kleber fully participated in practice with his Dallas Mavericks teammates for the first time. He’s trending positively ahead of the team’s regular-season opener, a matchup against the San Antonio Spurs on Oct. 24.
"It's great being back on the court, being back with the team, so, good, I feel good about it," Kleber said.
As head coach Jason Kidd told reporters in Los Angeles, Kleber suffered his injury before the team opened training camp. The veteran forward described it as being a “minor” injury but it took time for him to fully recover.
"Yeah, it was before, last day before we started,” Kleber said. “It was minor, so nothing bad, but obviously took a little bit of time."
On Friday, the Mavericks played some 5-on-5 and watched film, with an emphasis on cleaning up some mistakes from the preseason finale. Aside from Danté Exum, who remains sidelined after wrist surgery, the Mavericks are beginning their potential rotation available to practice. Luka Dončić, who also missed all of preseason with a left calf contusion, went through his second full practice.
“Yeah, we played some 5-on-5 to get our rhythm and legs back, went up and down the court a bit, and cleaned up some things from yesterday's game,” Kleber said. “We also worked on film, just trying to keep improving every day. With less than a week until the first game, we need to make sure we’re aligned on everything.”
After adding Klay Thompson, Quentin Grimes, Naji Marshall, and Spencer Dinwiddie in the offseason, Kleber is impressed with what they’ve brought to the Mavericks. Kleber felt the group played with a better pace in their previous outing, helping to fuel a blowout victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
"They’re very talented and bring a lot of energy. We did a better job yesterday playing with pace, which is something we can build on,” Kleber said. “We have a lot of threats out there now, and they're doing a great job adjusting on the defensive end.”
The newcomers are still adjusting to the terminology and principles of the Mavericks’ system, which has led to some preseason miscommunications. Kleber, coming off a season averaging 4.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.6 assists, praised the character of each, but acknowledged defensive communication can improve as a group.
"I think overall, it's about including the new guys, who might have a different understanding of the defensive concepts from before,” Kleber said. “It's about communicating with them and building their trust in the system and their teammates, knowing that help will be there. I think the biggest area we can improve is better communication on the defensive end."
“There are sometimes miscommunications because things are new, but overall, they’re great character guys who bring good energy to practices,” Kleber added. “Unfortunately, I didn't get to watch most of them, but the intensity was high, and the level of basketball was fun to see."
The Mavericks have five days to prepare for their first regular season matchup in an 82-game marathon they anticipate rival teams marking their matchups on their calendar.
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