The Mavericks by all accounts won the NBA draft by striking a deal with the Atlanta Hawks to select European sensation Luka Doncic. They got the player at the top of their board and another young piece to pair with second-year point guard Dennis Smith Jr.

The big question is how Doncic and Smith will fit together on a basketball court. SportsDay's Kevin Sherrington wrote about the issue after the draft.

It’s a fair concern -- the Mavericks occasionally tried playing Smith off the ball during his rookie season. The results were not encouraging.

"It's a big difference for me," he said in February. "Like I said, I've been playing point guard for my whole life since I've been playing basketball, so it's a huge adjustment. But I guess that's where we're headed to, so I got to continue to work and learn how to play off the ball."

Doncic, meanwhile, has already been compared to Steve Nash and was essentially the lead ball handler for Real Madrid in the EuroLeague.

But Rick Carlisle’s offense should be able to maximize the strengths of both Smith and Doncic, even when either plays off the ball. Let’s first take a look at the lineups Carlisle played the most last season.

Carlisle is known for playing multiguard lineups, and last season was no exception. Carlisle would consistently play lineups involving some combination of Smith, J.J. Barea and Yogi Ferrell. The lineup that played the second-most total minutes for the Mavs featured Barea, Ferrell and Devin Harris.

Envision the 6-8 Doncic with his passing ability and size replacing Ferrell or Barea in lineups with Smith.

It’s not a new experience for Doncic to have to share the ball with a point guard that needs it. He played with Miami Heat all star Goran Dragic on the Slovenian national team, and the two led the squad to a EuroBasket championship.

Imagine Dragic as Smith here, getting trapped but whipping the ball out to Doncic on the wing for a three.

Having Doncic on the floor provides the Mavericks with an extra dimension of size they don’t get with Barea or Ferrell. Here, Doncic grabs a rebound takes it to the other end for a dunk in transition, with Dragic right behind him if things go awry.

Below is a perfect example of what you might expect from Doncic in Dallas. A big man sets a pick, switching Kristaps Porzingis onto Doncic. He now has a few options: lob to the rolling big, drive to the hoop himself, or kick the ball out to Dragic or Anthony Randolph (No. 0 in white) for an open three.

Doncic chooses to take it to the rim, using his wingspan to score and keep the ball out of Porzingis’ reach. Now picture Dirk Nowitzki or Dwight Powell as the screener, with Smith playing Dragic’s role and Randolph as Harrison Barnes.

Dragic, much like Smith, has the ability to get to the basket at will and cause all sorts of havoc. The defense here collapses, and Dragic finds a wide open Doncic for three. It’s easy to picture Smith and Doncic in the exact same situation.

The pieces start to make more sense. Doncic’s passing and creativity should make Smith a better player, while Smith’s speed and athleticism should create opportunities for Doncic.

It won’t be without some warts at the start. Smith must become a better long-distance shooter and accept playing off the ball at times.

The Mavs played the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers on the road in February. Smith started both games at shooting guard, with Barea as the primary ball handler.

Smith averaged 10 points, 2.5 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 4 turnovers in the two games. He also shot 7-for-27 from the floor and 1-for-10 from 3-point range. Plays like this became commonplace.

But with a playmaker of Doncic’s caliber on the floor with Smith? The Mavs should see more of this and way more transition buckets -- Dallas was 27th in the league in pace last season.

Is it the perfect fit? No, at least not at the start. But Smith is only 20 and Doncic is only 19. The two combined don’t even meet Dirk Nowitzki’s age. The two will need to improve facets of their game to make this marriage work, but they should be able to complement each other much like Doncic did with Dragic.

But the Mavs got their guy, and that’s half the battle.