The One Thing Holding Kyle Collinsworth Back

The Dallas Mavericks handed a partial guaranteed contract to BYU star Kyle Collinsworth, but he still has one thing holding him back.

Known for his record-setting seven triple-doubles in college, Kyle Collinsworth goes from being known as Mr. Triple Double at BYU to trying to make the final roster for the Dallas Mavericks. Not only is his college fame in the past, but he faces a tough uphill battle with the crowded backcourt in Dallas.

Dallas obviously has Deron Williams and Wesley Matthews in the starting backcourt. Off the bench, they have J.J. Barea, Devin Harris, and newly signed Seth Curry that looks to be in the rotation. That leaves Kyle Collinsworth to battle with Jonathan Gibson and the other partial guaranteed guys for one of the final roster spots.

At the Mavs open practice for the fans on Wednesday, Collinsworth found himself running the point for one of the inner squad teams where he showed good perimeter defense against Gibson and solid playmaking finding the open teammate.

When Rick Carlisle was asked about Collinsworth on day three of training camp, Carlisle mentioned one thing that could hold Collinsworth back.

“Very interesting prospect. He led the country in triple doubles. It is a matter of him getting his shooting down. When he is able to do that, he is an NBA player.”

When I left practice on Thursday, Collinsworth was one of the last players in the gym working on his outside shot around the arc. Shooting just 24% from behind the arc in his last year at BYU, it’s obvious that Collinsworth has to prove to Dallas that he can hit a consistent shot before he has a spot on the team.

“He’s getting closer. He is doing a lot of good things in camp. There are seven guys fighting for two spots” Carlisle says.

The way it sounds, the coaching staff and Collinsworth seems to be on the right page in regards to what he has to improve on if he wants a legit shot at making the team.

Carlisle originally said at the start of training camp that there were six players fighting for one spot, but now says there are seven players fighting for two spots. We can speculate on who those players are, but we all know Collinsworth is in that group.

If Collinsworth can prove to the coaching staff that his shot has improved, don’t be surprised if he is one of the final guys named to the roster.