The Dallas Mavericks are attempting to change things up in their health and performance department. They’ve parted ways with head athletic trainer Dionne Calhoun and athletic performance director Keith Belton. This restructuring would be the third consecutive offseason of extreme personnel upheaval. The organization understands that it needs a complete overhaul of its philosophy on player health and performance.
Dionne Calhoun gave 21 years of service on the Mavericks staff. In 2019, she was promoted to head athletic trainer. She became one of the last standouts from the former healthcare and performance staff. This team back then was headed by former director Casey Smith. After Smith’s dismissal in August 2023, he joined the New York Knicks as vice president of sports medicine, paving the way for a new direction within the Mavericks’ organization.
General manager Nico Harrison’s decision to release Calhoun follows a tumultuous period for the team’s health staff. Harrison was complicit in the decision to fire Keith Belton. Belton was only hired last summer and had previously been the director of football performance at UCLA. Belton’s brief tenure came to an end following a loud confrontation with a staff member at the team’s practice facility, which prompted an investigation by the organization’s human relations department.
Included in the ongoing shake-up is the recent departure of longtime athletic performance director Jeremy Holsopple. This legislative shift highlights what seems to be an unyielding commitment to a new era of player care and performance optimization. Like the Suns, it’s abundantly clear that the Mavericks are focused on recalibrating their approach and roster moving forward as they try to improve their greatness threshold.
Dereck Lively II was the story that stole that spotlight during this transition. He had to go through an aggressive return-to-play workout led by Belton for someone who was dealing with a stress fracture in his right ankle. The injury took three months away from his career. This incident brought to light the importance of having proper rehabilitation and reconditioning protocols in place under the team umbrella.
The Mavericks are charting this new course with admirable foresight and purpose. They want to set a new standard for prioritizing athlete well-being and meaningfully addressing the complex issue of injury and recovery. The organization remains focused on establishing a cohesive health and performance strategy that aligns with their broader objectives for success on the court.
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