Thursday’s loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder saw the Dallas Mavericks limping out of the arena. A game that, let’s just say, was physical, saw several Mavericks bumping towards the bench, including a self-inflicted injury that sent Josh Green to the locker room early. All this after Luka Doncic had to miss the game due to hamstring soreness the night before.
Injuries are nothing new this season. The Mavericks fought them a lot. But it will be important that they manage them carefully – both as they work their way out of play-in games and into an assured playoff spot, and then to stay healthy as they will reach the playoffs. After a rough stretch of games after the All-Star break, the Mavericks were finally finding a new rhythm against weaker opponents. It is now a matter of maintaining it in the home stretch.
Athleticism
Rank: 10 (Level 3: Playoff teams)
Last week: 9
Who is their cover guy? Luka Doncic | 59 points, 18 of 39 (46.2%) FG
Who fought? Tim Hardaway Jr. | 25 points, 6 of 22 (27.3%) FG
The 1-2 combo of Dončić and Kyrie Irving is quite difficult to face late in the game. Both have been incendiary this season and have put opponents on the trail. Dončić has just been a much bigger playmaker in addition to scoring, so he gets the nod. Surprisingly, Hardaway was horrible with shooting late in the game. Opponents still fear his shot, but they’d much rather it go to him than the two stars.
Key statistics
Save: 37-28
Offensive rating: 118.1 (6th)
Defensive rating: 116.9 (tied 21st)
Net rating: 1.2
NBA
Rank: 10
Last week: 9
The two-game winning streak coincides with a change in the Mavs’ starting lineup, with Derrick Jones Jr. and Daniel Gafford replacing Josh Green and Derek Lively II, respectively. But the new formation played less than 20 minutes total in both games and was dominated by the Heat on Thursday when three reserves (including Lively) were on the floor with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving down the line. Dante Exum scored a huge 3-pointer and Maxi Kleber kept an offensive rebound alive, leading to a 3-point Irving for a five-point lead.
Kleber has only started seven of his 27 games this season, but he is one of two players (Doncic is the other) who have been on the court in record time in each of the Mavs’ last six games and have been within five points in the final five minutes. The Mavs dominated their opponents by 14.4 points per 100 possessions in 233 total minutes with Kleber on the floor alongside Doncic and Irving.
Doncic had triple-doubles of 30 points in six consecutive matches (an NBA record), on average 36.3, 11.0 and 11.5 on this section. Last season, he became the second player in NBA history (after Michael Jordan in 1988-89) to average at least 32 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. This season he is able to become the first to have an average of at least 32, nine and nine.
The Mavs’ nine-game Eastern Conference streak ends Monday in Chicago. They will next play 10 straight in the West, currently just 10-14 in games played between the top 10 in the West and face the Warriors, Thunder and Nuggets this week.
Launderer’s Report
Rank: 10
Last week: 11
The Dallas Mavericks finished the week with a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, but Luka Dončić missed that game due to hamstring soreness, and the team had already won four games in a row.
If Dončić can return on relatively short notice, it appears the Mavericks are finally starting to find some rhythm with a roster that saw a lot of turnover at the trade deadline.
Since the moves that landed Daniel Gafford and PJ Washington were made, Dallas is 10-6 and Dončić has averaged 33.9 points, 11.1 assists, 9.4 rebounds and 4.0 shooting threes while shooting 39.0% from deep.
ESPN
Rank: 11
Last week: 13
Luka Doncicwho set the NBA record for longest triple-double streaks of 35 and 30 points and has an activity record streak of seven consecutive 20-point triple-doubles, is not the only Maverick in the midst of a historic run. Center Daniel Gafford has made 28 consecutive field goal attempts over the last four games, the longest such streak in the play-by-play era (since 1996-97) and seven shy of Wilt Chamberlain’s NBA record set in 1967 The Mavs are 3-0 since adding Gafford and Derrick Jones Jr.. to the starting five. This team dominated its opponents by 24 points in 30 minutes during these matches. -MacMahon
