A funny thing happened to Dwight Powell on the six-game home stand that ended Saturday with a win over Philadelphia.

The Mavericks’ center has, like all Mavericks big and small, been drilled to embrace open looks at 3-point shots and take them with confidence.

No problem there. It’s the way of the NBA these days.

But for four consecutive games during the middle of the home stand, the 6-9 Powell took exactly zero 3-pointers.

All 24 shots he took from the field in games against Charlotte, Chicago, Denver and the LA Lakers were worth two points.

He made 19 of them, which equates to 79.2 percent. But no matter how you slice it, it’s amazing efficiency. Every single one of the 24 shots came from 5 feet or closer and 22 of them were layups or dunks.

Before those games, 26.5 percent from 3-point range (9-of-34).

Is there a message here? And more importantly, have things changed for Powell strategically?

“There’s been an adjustment,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “And he’s doing great things. We’re still working on his 3-point shooting. The 3-point shot is not off the table by any stretch of the imagination. He’s made some adjustments (and) been very productive.”

Powell has been the starting center virtually all season, usually lining up alongside Kristaps Porzingis on the front line. While the 7-3 Porzingis spends lots of time on the perimeter, Powell has made a nice living in the paint. He’s a premier roller going to the basket in the pick-and-roll.

He said he’s not opposed to the 3-point shot. It’s a matter of doing what helps the Mavericks the most.

“I’m trying to do whatever I can right now to help us win, find ways to be as effective as possible and take advantage of various situations I find myself in,” Powell said.

He was adamant that the 3-point shot is still in his quiver. But when it comes to what’s on the table for him offensively, he said: “The table is large enough that everything is on the table. But what we need to make sure we’re doing is that the title of that table is: winning.

“I have to be even more productive to help us get wins.”

Interestingly, Powell shot 8-of-11 against Philadelphia on Saturday. He was 8-for-8 inside the arc and missed all three of his 3-pointers.

Seems like an affirmation that sticking to what’s working best is in Powell’s – and the Mavericks’ – best interest.

Despite his 3-point percentage, Powell’s season shooting percentage overall is 62.1 percent, placing him solidly in the top 10 in the league if he had enough field goals made to qualify for that statistic.

The minimum for inclusion is 300 field goals made for a season. Powell is on pace to make 266 field goals this season.

Twitter: @ESefko

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