Dallas is just 3-5 since winning a season-best seven straight games after last month's NBA trade deadline.
DALLAS — After a tough stretch after the All-Star break, the Dallas Mavericks head into their final sprint of the season trying to figure out which losing streak is the true version of themselves.
Dallas (36-28, No. 8) is just 3-5 since winning a season-high seven straight games after last month's NBA trade deadline. Within the current scope of games, the only losses to Philadelphia and Cleveland were particularly competitive.
Losses against Indiana (twice) and Boston were by an average of 22 points, and with Rick Carlisle pep-talking his former team twice in less than a week, the biggest problem for the Mavericks, whose team has failed, is the team behind him. Many people pointed out that he was the coach who took over from . To make adjustments between meetings.
The current roster configuration leaves little room to make a difference if key members of the defense are out, and if either Kyrie Irving or Luka Doncic are shooting on a cold night, there is no depth behind them. It should be noted that the offense will be unsustainable if the
Dante Exum's return to the rotation from injury happened slowly during the losing streak, and with Exum back under his belt, the presence of a perimeter defender was a clear addition for Dallas, bringing the team back to full strength. .
With Exum back, he joins P.J. Washington, Derrick Jones Jr., and Josh Green, who each can press defensively and allow one player to rotate out without fear of running out. become. The defensive rotation set the tone in a 114-108 home win against Miami, when the Reds broke out of a slump.
In a game where the offense was dominated by Luka and Kyrie, the defensive efforts of Exum and rookie center Derek Lively II made the difference. Lively won at +17 and Exum at +16, giving Dallas the lead on the night. With this win, the Mavericks moved into sixth place in the Western Conference during a winning streak leading up to the All-Star Game, and had fallen to eighth place in the Western Conference despite being eliminated from the play-in tournament. The losing streak ended at 3.
The Mavs continued on the road with a 142-124 win by Dallas in Detroit on Saturday night, giving the Mavs their first back-to-back wins since mid-February. A star backcourt duo totaling 60 points is a standard sight at first glance, but this game was a masterful example of what the roster is capable of when an offense other than Luka and Kyrie enters the picture. It's class, and Dallas wants that to become the norm. forward.
Daniel Gafford continued his perfect shooting streak for the third straight game, scoring 17 points, and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 17 points, shooting 50% from deep. Hardaway has been in a slump for more than a month, and getting him fired up for the final sprint of the season will be key if Dallas hopes to claw its way out of the play-ins.
Before it was all said and done in Detroit, Luka Doncic had set an NBA record with six straight triple-doubles of 35 points or more.
But Dallas has lost three of those games in a row, showing that it remains difficult for the Mavericks to combine Doncic's brilliance with wins.
Doncic may be criticized for his empty stats, especially in the loss to Dallas, but he was named Western Conference Player of the Month for February, helped by Dallas' .727 winning percentage that month. .
Doncic averaged 33.4 points, 9.6 rebounds and 10.3 assists in February. So far in March, Doncic has averaged 37.6 points, 10.8 rebounds and 10.6 assists in five games. It's clear that the only reason Dallas isn't a lottery team is the fact that they can put Luka Doncic on the court for more than 35 minutes a night, but the team needs to continue moving up the standings for him to be considered a legitimate MVP. There will be.
Dallas now heads to the Second City for Monday night's game against the Chicago Bulls, which will be available to watch on WFAA. He then returns home to host Golden State, his first Western Conference opponent since winning seven straight against Phoenix in late February. .
Chicago is 31-32 this season, ranking ninth in the East Division, but has improved recently, going 3-1 in their last four games. With former All-Star Zach Levine having his season ended with a foot injury, the Bulls are relying on the trio of DeMar DeRozan, Coby White and Nikola Vucevic to lead the team.
Vucevic has been reliable, scoring 20 points and 10 points on any given night and posting a double-double in four straight games. The key to the Mavs' victory will depend on the frontcourt of Lively, Gafford and Maxi Kleber stopping Vucevic, and whether the Mavs' revamped perimeter defense puts pressure on White, who has stepped up in LaVine's absence. ing.
The Mavs could have used their strong record against teams in the East to keep pace in the packed West, but all things considered, they're sandwiched within range of a secured playoff spot. considers himself lucky.
Dallas is in contention for the final play-in spot with 18 games left in the season, one game behind No. 6 Sacramento, 2.5 games back of Southwest Division leader New Orleans, and 2.5 games back of No. 10 Golden State.
If the Mavericks can find a way to get Luka Magic to wins more regularly, it could be a good time for him to return against in-conference and divisional opponents.
Do you think the Mavericks will capitalize on Luka's greatness to win more games in the future? Share your thoughts with Irvin on Twitter @Twittirv.
