05-15-2021, 12:36 AM
MAVERICKS SQUEAK BY RAPTORS' D-TEAM
PLAY-IN TOURNAMENT AVOIDED
The Mavs led by as much as 19 points on the evening, gradually squandered most of their edge, and survived a strong push by the Raptors in the clutch to salvage a 4-point victory.
GAME STORY
Toronto, with nothing left to play for in one direction or the other, rested numerous players on the second night of a back-to-back. Only nine guys suited up, and I recognized few of them. For the Mavs, Maxi returned to the injury list, still suffering from his sore Achilles. Redick remained out, as expected. Rick went with the starting lineup from the previous match — Luka, THJ, DFS, KP, Powell. This was only the second use of this starting unit this season, but was the most-used last season.
The Mavericks led for all but one possession of the first quarter, and closed the period ahead 31-26.
After some windshield wiper ball for the first half of the second, the Mavs took off with some hot three-point shooting to take a 66-52 advantage into the locker room. Porzingis led the home team Mavericks with 10 points.
Brunson had 15 points in the half on perfect 6-6 shooting. KP joined him at 15 points. The ball was moving crisply, and 18 of Dallas’ 23 made baskets were assisted.
Dallas lost a few points in the third, ending the frame with a 92-83 margin. Their three-point efforts went cold, and they were only 2-10 on attempts from distance.
The Raps drew within six in the early minutes of the fourth. The visitors, to their credit, never gave up, and eventually made the last few minutes interesting. They drew within two points a couple of times in the last 15 seconds, but J Rich came through with four clutch free throws.
STATISTICS
The Maverick point differentials were -14 on points from twos, +12 on points from threes, and +6 on made free throws. Toronto pounded Dallas inside for a 54-36 advantage in PIP, but the Mavs went 40% from three and took and made more FTAs than the opposition. The home team also had a striking 27-19 edge in assists. The Mavs continue to live and die by the long shot — they had 13 triples in the first half and led by 14, and 4 treys in the second to trail the Raps by 10 points in the second twenty-four.
PLAYERS
STARTERS
Porzingis was back to a regular complement of minutes at 34, opened the scoring with a corner three, and notched 21 points and 10 rebounds in the effort. He looked as healthy as he ever does, and had some good activity level on the offensive side of the court and the glass. I regret to add that I didn't notice much, if any, improvement defensively, from KP, or really any of the other Mavs for that matter. Maybe they were conserving energy or sum'n. Anyway, Rick thought Zinger played very well, hit open shots, moved the ball well, rebounded, and changed some shots and rebounds. He said it would have been very tough to win the last two games without KP.
Luka was 1-8 from distance, but found plenty of other ways to contribute, scoring his 11th triple-double of the season with 21 points, 10 boards, 11 assists, and only 1 turnover. He was doing a little jawing at the refs in the first quarter, and at one point, his teammates had to rein him in, but he maintained his composure for the rest of the match.
Doe-Doe was back to making his smart cuts, and put 17 points on the board, including two important threes in the last five minutes.
Powell didn’t stuff the stat sheet, but was brought back to close the game when the Mavs appeared to be in danger of letting it slip away in the last few minutes. It was a terrible shooting night for THJ (1-11), but he did have a couple of steals and 4 assists, including a lovely back pass to KP for a dunk. That sequence was designated the What-a-Burger Play of the Game.
BENCH
Brunson had a gem of a night in a sixth-man role, scoring 19 points on 8-11 shooting, contributing 4 assists, and being counted on to close a tight game. He took a couple of bad hits, and had to repair to the locker room briefly on the second. It was good to see him check back in. Apparently, it was an Aaron Bane (I think) knee hitting the inside of Jalen’s knee. Hopefully, he will not have lingering issues. Rick liked Brunson’s play, and explained that the team needed his talents as a second ball handler on the floor against Toronto’s quick defense.
Richardson was the fifth Mav in double figures with 10 points, including two corner threes from opposite sides of the court in the first quarter, and four ice-in-his-veins free throws to ice the game at the end.
Melli was somewhat unexpectedly relied on for 21 minutes of action, and completed a couple of threes. Willie completed the big-man rotation with 14 minutes, and was called for 4 fouls. Burke had 7 points in 11 minutes and led the team in +/- at +10.
RAPTORS. The Raps played only 7 guys. Dallas product Jalen Harris showed out well in his homecoming, lighting up the court with 31 points. Malachi Flynn boasted 31. These represented season highs in scoring for both players. Three other Raptors were in double figures. You have to tip your hat to this gritty team — they hung in to the bitter end, and gave the Mavericks all they could handle down the stretch.
OBSERVATIONS
Rick noted that this was another game in which the team struggled against a side with a poor record. He thinks his squad needs to grow out of this pattern. His preferred disposition is that his men not gauge their effort by the record of the opponent — they’re all NBA players, and the fact that they have a losing record doesn’t mean they won’t try their hardest to take you. Yes, a good game to illustrate that point once again. Devin Harris speculated that the Mavericks had relaxed a little too much in the second half, and the Raps took advantage.
I suppose we should mention the unsettling aspects of this match -- the over-reliance on high-variance three-point shooting, and the abominable lack of interior defense. It was less than reassuring to see the Raptors G-League guys and deep bench players promenading to the rim like they thought they were in the Easter Parade. Hopefully, the coaching staff will have a few tricks up their sleeves to try to install some measure of resistance in the playoffs.
Despite the close score, I don’t know that there is a lot more to take away from this game beyond the obvious point that they need to make a consistent effort, no matter who the opposing team is. Presumably, they will be attentive in their playoff games. Speaking of which, the Mavs secured a place in the playoffs, avoiding the play-in run-up with this victory. That is an important step, and I’m sure they were relieved and proud to have accomplished the feat.
Our boys can still secure the fifth seed with a Mavs win or a Portland loss on Sunday.
One more regular-season game, Mavs fans! Mavs v Minny Sunday evening. Be there or be square!
GO MAVS!
PLAY-IN TOURNAMENT AVOIDED
The Mavs led by as much as 19 points on the evening, gradually squandered most of their edge, and survived a strong push by the Raptors in the clutch to salvage a 4-point victory.
GAME STORY
Toronto, with nothing left to play for in one direction or the other, rested numerous players on the second night of a back-to-back. Only nine guys suited up, and I recognized few of them. For the Mavs, Maxi returned to the injury list, still suffering from his sore Achilles. Redick remained out, as expected. Rick went with the starting lineup from the previous match — Luka, THJ, DFS, KP, Powell. This was only the second use of this starting unit this season, but was the most-used last season.
The Mavericks led for all but one possession of the first quarter, and closed the period ahead 31-26.
After some windshield wiper ball for the first half of the second, the Mavs took off with some hot three-point shooting to take a 66-52 advantage into the locker room. Porzingis led the home team Mavericks with 10 points.
Brunson had 15 points in the half on perfect 6-6 shooting. KP joined him at 15 points. The ball was moving crisply, and 18 of Dallas’ 23 made baskets were assisted.
Dallas lost a few points in the third, ending the frame with a 92-83 margin. Their three-point efforts went cold, and they were only 2-10 on attempts from distance.
The Raps drew within six in the early minutes of the fourth. The visitors, to their credit, never gave up, and eventually made the last few minutes interesting. They drew within two points a couple of times in the last 15 seconds, but J Rich came through with four clutch free throws.
STATISTICS
The Maverick point differentials were -14 on points from twos, +12 on points from threes, and +6 on made free throws. Toronto pounded Dallas inside for a 54-36 advantage in PIP, but the Mavs went 40% from three and took and made more FTAs than the opposition. The home team also had a striking 27-19 edge in assists. The Mavs continue to live and die by the long shot — they had 13 triples in the first half and led by 14, and 4 treys in the second to trail the Raps by 10 points in the second twenty-four.
PLAYERS
STARTERS
Porzingis was back to a regular complement of minutes at 34, opened the scoring with a corner three, and notched 21 points and 10 rebounds in the effort. He looked as healthy as he ever does, and had some good activity level on the offensive side of the court and the glass. I regret to add that I didn't notice much, if any, improvement defensively, from KP, or really any of the other Mavs for that matter. Maybe they were conserving energy or sum'n. Anyway, Rick thought Zinger played very well, hit open shots, moved the ball well, rebounded, and changed some shots and rebounds. He said it would have been very tough to win the last two games without KP.
Luka was 1-8 from distance, but found plenty of other ways to contribute, scoring his 11th triple-double of the season with 21 points, 10 boards, 11 assists, and only 1 turnover. He was doing a little jawing at the refs in the first quarter, and at one point, his teammates had to rein him in, but he maintained his composure for the rest of the match.
Doe-Doe was back to making his smart cuts, and put 17 points on the board, including two important threes in the last five minutes.
Powell didn’t stuff the stat sheet, but was brought back to close the game when the Mavs appeared to be in danger of letting it slip away in the last few minutes. It was a terrible shooting night for THJ (1-11), but he did have a couple of steals and 4 assists, including a lovely back pass to KP for a dunk. That sequence was designated the What-a-Burger Play of the Game.
BENCH
Brunson had a gem of a night in a sixth-man role, scoring 19 points on 8-11 shooting, contributing 4 assists, and being counted on to close a tight game. He took a couple of bad hits, and had to repair to the locker room briefly on the second. It was good to see him check back in. Apparently, it was an Aaron Bane (I think) knee hitting the inside of Jalen’s knee. Hopefully, he will not have lingering issues. Rick liked Brunson’s play, and explained that the team needed his talents as a second ball handler on the floor against Toronto’s quick defense.
Richardson was the fifth Mav in double figures with 10 points, including two corner threes from opposite sides of the court in the first quarter, and four ice-in-his-veins free throws to ice the game at the end.
Melli was somewhat unexpectedly relied on for 21 minutes of action, and completed a couple of threes. Willie completed the big-man rotation with 14 minutes, and was called for 4 fouls. Burke had 7 points in 11 minutes and led the team in +/- at +10.
RAPTORS. The Raps played only 7 guys. Dallas product Jalen Harris showed out well in his homecoming, lighting up the court with 31 points. Malachi Flynn boasted 31. These represented season highs in scoring for both players. Three other Raptors were in double figures. You have to tip your hat to this gritty team — they hung in to the bitter end, and gave the Mavericks all they could handle down the stretch.
OBSERVATIONS
Rick noted that this was another game in which the team struggled against a side with a poor record. He thinks his squad needs to grow out of this pattern. His preferred disposition is that his men not gauge their effort by the record of the opponent — they’re all NBA players, and the fact that they have a losing record doesn’t mean they won’t try their hardest to take you. Yes, a good game to illustrate that point once again. Devin Harris speculated that the Mavericks had relaxed a little too much in the second half, and the Raps took advantage.
I suppose we should mention the unsettling aspects of this match -- the over-reliance on high-variance three-point shooting, and the abominable lack of interior defense. It was less than reassuring to see the Raptors G-League guys and deep bench players promenading to the rim like they thought they were in the Easter Parade. Hopefully, the coaching staff will have a few tricks up their sleeves to try to install some measure of resistance in the playoffs.
Despite the close score, I don’t know that there is a lot more to take away from this game beyond the obvious point that they need to make a consistent effort, no matter who the opposing team is. Presumably, they will be attentive in their playoff games. Speaking of which, the Mavs secured a place in the playoffs, avoiding the play-in run-up with this victory. That is an important step, and I’m sure they were relieved and proud to have accomplished the feat.
Our boys can still secure the fifth seed with a Mavs win or a Portland loss on Sunday.
One more regular-season game, Mavs fans! Mavs v Minny Sunday evening. Be there or be square!
GO MAVS!