DALLAS, TEXAS –The 9-13 Mavericks are back home after stealing a road win and snapping their losing streak all in the same night and will be looking to grab their second consecutive win. Defense was the story of the first three quarters against the Hawks but Dallas’s offense highlighted the final quarter of the night increasing their 5 point lead at the beginning of the quarter to a 10 point lead in less than two minutes which propelled them to victory. Luka Doncic, Kristaps Porzingis, Tim Hardaway Jr, Josh Richardson, Dorian Finney-Smith and Jalen Brunson combined to score 112 of the Mavericks points which was the first time six players finished with double digits for the Mavericks this season.
Speaking of defensive effort, not only did Josh Richardson finish with 14 points but he also grabbed two steals and two blocks and took home the defensive player of the game belt rewarded by Rick Carlisle. Everything came together and it proved the level of potential this team has compared to what was displayed in January.
So now that the Mavericks have played two games with their full roster, I think we have an early idea of who this team truly is, but I think there are many levels to who they are.
Level #1: The foundation of their team which is defense.
Level #2: Playing aggressive on defense to create turnovers to convert on the opposite end. Level #3: Making the easy buckets inside the perimeter
Level #4: Solid minutes from the players on the bench and not forcing Luka to make every play
I think there are many more levels yet to be unlocked but their win against the Hawks provided a decent sample size of potential. As this team begins to click and understand their roles, the more their play will improve. In the meantime, it’s game by game for Dallas. No team should be overlooked or underestimated, but winning games like the one they won last night is a win they can build on.
Tonight, the Mavericks will face the Warriors in their third back to back of the season and all of their players will be healthy with not one player listed on the injury report. There will be no minutes/games restriction for Kristaps Porzingis going forward and he expressed how playing with minute or game restrictions has affected the overall rhythm to his game.
Dallas has won the last 4 meetings against the Warriors and the last time they faced one another was in January 2020. Luka averaged 27 points, 11 rebounds and 9.5 assists in those four victories and didn’t even play in the fourth quarter. This Warriors team is much different. Although they are without Klay Thompson for the entire season, they have still managed to win 11 games and Steph Curry is back to doing Steph Curry things coming off a game against the Celtics where he dropped 38 points.
Nothing is easy for the Mavericks as they attempt to dig themselves out of this hole. It’s going to be a long-steady climb, but the encouraging news is that Dallas is back to being healthy and can begin to reveal the other levels to their game as the season pushes forward and they play their next 7 games at home.
