DALLAS, Texas — The countdown can officially begin. The Mavericks are coming off a nice two game stretch in Milwaukee securing two victories and remain undefeated in the preseason. Tonight they will play their lone preseason home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves before tipping off the season next Wednesday in Phoenix.
Dallas has impressed so far and continues to enforce their will on the defensive end of the floor as expected. In two preseason games the Mavericks forced 28 turnovers and stole the ball 12 times, and have continued their trend of being exceptional from behind the arc.
The Mavericks leading scorers from their victory on Monday were Luka Doncic (27) and Josh Richardson (23) who continue to display early chemistry built between the two. Tim Hardaway Jr also added 17 points to the mix in his 27 minutes of play, while other players from the Mavericks “Bench Mob” also made valuable contributions to their victory like Jalen Brunson, Trey Burke, Willie Cauley-Stein, and Maxi Kleber.
This will be the first home game for the Dallas Mavericks in 280 days after finishing the remainder of the 2019-2020 season in the Orlando bubble. The Mavericks will not allow fans for this game, but coming home to play in a familiar setting can certainly make a difference.
On to Minnesota.
The Timberwolves have a solid tandem in Karl Anthony Towns who is one of the better athletic bigs in the NBA and D’Angelo Russell who at times can be lethal from behind the arc. Another player to watch for T-Wolves is athletic rookie guard Anthony Edwards who scored 12 points in 26 minutes, improving his stat line from the game before where he only scored 5 points in the same amount of playing time.
Minnesota hasn’t played a mistake free brand of basketball so far through the preseason, turning the ball over a combined 47 times in two consecutive losses to the Memphis Grizzlies, and struggled from the field shooting 40%. The Grizzlies scored twice as many points as the Timberwolves in the paint in both outings. This will be a main point of emphasis for the Mavericks heading into tonight’s matchup being the Mavericks had trouble defending the rim against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks.
Here is what we can expect from the Mavericks tonight
It’s A Dress Rehearsal
This is it. This is the dress rehearsal game and the Maverick starters will see much more playing time tonight as they gear up to play the Suns. The Mavericks will use this game to put the final stamp on their bench rotation. Don’t expect the starting lineup to change, but we will see how the Mavericks will outfit their rotational players. In the first two games the second unit consisted of Jalen Brunson, Trey Burke and Josh Green in the backcourt and Willie Cauley-Stein and Maxi Kleber in the front court. The Mavericks have the necessary depth needed, now it’s all about putting the pieces together going forward.
Hit Three’s At A High Clip
In their second matchup against the Bucks, the Mavericks hit 22 three pointers on 46 shots, which is very encouraging although early. Dallas was the 2nd best team from behind the arc in the NBA last season, which shouldn’t change much, but seeing the Mavericks hit three point shots at an impressive clip is a good sign this team will continue to be one of the better three point shooting teams in the NBA this season.
Rebounding
The Mavericks were outrebounded by the Bucks in both of their games, but not by much. Second chance points can be a difference maker and can help teams separate if they hold a small lead. The Mavericks were able to win those games but rebounding the basketball is always critical to the overall success championship caliber teams.
Defending the Rim
Another day, another all-star big. The Timberwolves were outscored by the Grizzlies in the paint in both outings. Expect the Mavericks to exploit the weaknesses of Minnesota’s interior offense, Dallas has done a good job of disrupting passing lanes and defending the perimeter. Let’s see if their interior defense improves tonight against Karl Anthony-Towns who gives defenders fits on the block.
Here are the projected starting lineups for tonight’s game
Dallas Mavericks
G Luka Doncic
G Josh Richardson
F Tim Hardaway Jr.
F Dorian Finney-Smith
C Dwight Powell
Minnesota Timberwolves
G D’Angelo Russell
G Malik Beasley
F Josh Okogie
F Jake Layman
C Karl Anthony Towns
Dallas has won 71 out of 122 matchups against the Timberwolves historically, and won all three matchups against the Timberwolves last season.
Tonight’s game tips off at 7:30PM Central on Fox Sports Southwest.
