5 things to note when the Dallas Mavericks visit the Charlotte Hornets

The Dallas Mavericks (49-30) won on the East Coast after brave and heartbreaking wins in their last two games. The Mavericks will play the Charlotte Hornets (19-59), who have the NBA's second-worst record (tied with the San Antonio Spurs and Washington Wizards) on Tuesday at Spectrum Center and control the game from the start. I would aim to do that.

The Hornets have lost five of their last six games and 10 of their last 12. The Mavs, on the other hand, are one of the most-watched teams in the league, winning 12 of their last 14 games. The Los Angeles Lakers are the only team. In the NBA, they have matched the Mavericks in nine of their last 10 wins.

The Mavs and Hornets first met on November 5th, with Dallas winning 124-118. It's a reminder that there are no certain outcomes in the NBA, and it's no doubt something the coaching staff is harping on in preparation for what could very well be a winnable game. At the time, P.J. Washington was still wearing baby blue pinstripes (he was one of three Hornets to score 20 or more points), and the Mavs got off to a hot start without playing much defense. .

Oh, how things change. Here are three things to keep in mind as the Mavs take on the Hornets for their second straight championship of the season.

Would you like to take a break?

With Washington's fellow trade deadline acquisition Daniel Gafford anchoring a new and improved Dallas defense (along with Derrick Jones Jr.), the Mavericks build a more comfortable lead than last time around and maintain it. The ability is further increasing. around it. Hopefully Tuesday's game will give the stars a little rest late in the game. Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving each played 45 minutes and combined for 85 points in Sunday's 147-136 overtime win over Houston. Doncic was bleeding from both knees at the end of the game, and Irving admitted in his postgame interview that he was exhausted.

no ball

LaMelo Ball scored 30 points on 5-of-10 3-point shooting in his first game against the Mavs. However, Ball was inactive for the season as of late January due to an injury to his right ankle that essentially ended his season.

This is obviously one less scorer for the Mavericks to worry about, but again, there's no reason to think this will be a laughing stock.

Just when you thought Charlotte had nothing to play for.

You could say the Hornets didn't have anything to play for at the end of the regular season, but they showed no signs of losing in their last game. Charlotte came away from a close 121-118 home loss on Monday to the Oklahoma City Thunder, who currently sit in third place in the Western Conference and are just one game out of first place.

All eight Hornets who played in the game scored in double figures in the narrow loss. Even former Maverick Davis Bertans scored 12 points in 24 minutes. Their bench may be a little thin and it may be the second night of back-to-back games, but that's no reason to discount the Hornets. It should be more motivation for this Mavs team to jump on Charlotte early, play from the front and get ready for the final three games of the regular season.

grant williams

Photo by: Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images

Since being traded to Charlotte in a deal with Washington and the Mavericks, Grant Williams is averaging 13.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He's playing better than he was in Dallas this year, but he's not setting the world on fire. For reference, he averaged 8.1 points and 3.6 rebounds with the Mavs.

Williams led Charlotte with 19 points and had five assists in the loss to Oklahoma City. He's averaging close to 15 points and six boards over the past seven games. In recent games, he has also been used as a small-ball number five in certain lineups.

His time in Dallas was a bit of a head-scratcher — even though he seemed like an instant spot in the Mavericks' rotation for a player like Williams, he was a square It was like a round peg trying to fit into a hole. It didn't work out, and when it became clear, the Mavericks team wasted no time in moving on from Williams.

The Mavs certainly don't want to see him make his first few 3-pointers and catch fire, but even if he produces something like a “revenge game,” the Mavs' defense will If rookie Brandon Miller can tighten up as well, much like Tre Mann and Miles Bridges, they should be able to limit the damage.

It will be especially interesting to see what the NBA's leading scorer can do against his former teammate, as he could potentially tie the matchup guarding Doncic.

Housekeeping: Doncic technical foul totals

The NBA announced Monday that Luka Doncic's 15th technical foul of the season, committed with one second left in the first quarter of the team's win over the Rockets, has been dismissed.

The player was suspended for his 16th technical foul of the season, and that count will not carry over into the playoffs.