The Dallas Mavericks (50-30) will play their final regular season game on Friday night against the Detroit Pistons (13-66) at American Airlines Center. After a short trip to the East Coast with wins over the Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat, the Mavericks can play Friday with a guaranteed playoff berth against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Pistons are at the bottom of the league with a two-game lead over the Washington Wizards. The game is tipped at 7:30 PM CT and can be watched locally on WFAA.
The last time these teams met was in early March, when the Mavericks defeated the Pistons 142-124 in Detroit. Luka Doncic had 39 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists as part of a consecutive 30-point triple-double. Since then, the Pistons are 3-14 and enter this matchup on a seven-game losing streak. During the same period, the Mavericks are 14-2 with a five-game winning streak. Here's what we'll focus on tonight.
healthy rhythm
The Mavericks should feel free and comfortable playing in the AAC, the last regular season of the season, knowing their postseason fate is certain. It would be good for the Mavericks to get the game out of the way early and allow starters and stars alike to find their rhythm without forcing themselves too much. The battle here is that when that happens, the Mavericks often find themselves in the fight.
When they played Detroit in March, they led 69-65 at the half. An overwhelming performance was needed in the second half to close the gap. Recall that Pistons off the bench Santino Fontecchio found God early in the game against Dallas and finished the night scoring 27 points on 4-of-3 shooting. If you limit such outbursts, you should be fine. To build momentum heading into the postseason, they need to stay healthy while maintaining their rhythm. Speaking of health…
josh green rebound
Mavericks wing Josh Green returned to action Wednesday night after missing nearly a month due to injury. He played just 14 minutes in the win over the Miami Heat, recording three points, four rebounds, and two assists.
This year has been a challenging season for Green, who showed improvement last season when his team struggled. He has played in just 55 games this season while battling various injuries, leaving him with little time to rediscover his role before the playoffs. The Mavericks have strong depth this season with the ability to play multiple wings with strong defensive abilities, which eases the pressure on Green to play. But it would certainly be great to have another one on Arsenal for the next game against the Clippers. Perhaps Jason Kidd can find extra points for Green in Friday's matchup.
Maintain flow while defending
The Mavericks turning into a defensive team after the trade deadline is a very exciting storyline this season. It's been a long time since we've seen the Mavericks win in more ways than just by shooting opposing teams out of the gym. Some of that accomplishment came at the expense of other accomplishments, such as a consistent three-ball.
But over the last nine games, it's started to come back. After going a horrible 12-of-42 against the Utah Jazz last month, the Mavericks are averaging 17-of-42 from 3-of-3 per night, over 40% from three. has been achieved. The Pistons have 3 wins and 37 losses this season. They rank 27th in offense and 25th in defense on the season, so unless Dallas punts completely, there won't be much resistance from Detroit. This should serve as a way to fine-tune things before it all gets too serious.
How to watch
Tipoff is set for 7:30pm Central Time and will be available to watch on WFAA.
