Dereck Lively II

Dereck Lively II is a rookie center who currently plays for the Dallas Mavericks basketball team in the NBA. Lively is a unique player as he is one of those rare centers who is a defensive-minded player first and then an offensive weapon. Born to parents Dereck Lively and Katherine Drysdale in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on February 12, 2004, the nineteen-year-old (as of November 2023) has basketball in his blood as his mother used to play the game in her younger days.

What Lively brings to the table is his brilliant work protecting the ring. Blessed with a height of 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) and an enormous wingspan of 7 feet 7 inches, Lively makes it difficult for the opposing players to take shots over him. Furthermore, his agility, for a player of his stature, makes it tough to go past him as he is quick to get into his position.

On the offensive side of the ball, Lively has shown impeccable ability while dunking the ball. His skills of catching high balls and throwing them down are quite evident from his college day performances. Unfortunately, his other skills, such as shooting from a distance, and even layups are a work in progress. If he can quickly figure out a way to sort this then Lively has the capacity to develop into a lethal player on both ends of the floor.