Mavs Lose Heartbreaker in OKC

The depleted Mavs lost a late-game lead again. I guess the good news is that they had an opportunity to win right down to the wire. 


Game Story and Analytics

Ryan Broekhoff and Tim Hardaway were listed as out when the roster was submitted. Porzingis was a last-minute scratch with a sore knee. Roberson was missing for the Thunder. 

The Mavs got off to a hot start, and built a 12-point lead by the end of the first quarter. In the second period, the Mavericks started injecting a little crazy into their game, taking super-long threes and flinging long passes. The Thunder ended the half with an 8-0 run, leaving Dallas with a 51-50 advantage. Danilo Gallinari messed with the Mavs' minds in the third, but the boys in blue hung in, entering the fourth with a 1-point edge. Our guys were up by 7 with 2:42 left in the game. Chris Paul was in the process of taking over the game, and scored 13 points in the last 4:40. In the last 2:42, OKC went on a 14-2 run. With ten seconds left, Maxi missed an open three, Seth grabbed the offensive board, and Luka missed another open three. Guess it just wasn't their night. 

The Mavs were undone by very poor shooting (35%) and lukewarm rebounding, although they did have a presence on the offensive glass (17), especially toward the end of the game. They were +27 on points from threes, -2 on made free throws, and -30 on points from twos. I'm not sure what the deal is with the Mavericks and free throws, but they missed 7 of their 27 tries. 


Players

Luka (40 min) had a monster night, with 35 points, 10 boards, and 7 assists. He had his usual array of spectacular plays, but in the end, it wasn't enough to get the team over the hump. I hate to critique the young superstar, but it did seem to me that he was taking an awful lot of very difficult shots -- very long threes, midrange attempts with one or more guys in his face, etc. I didn't go back and check to see how many of those were at the end of the shot clock, but it may be that he could be a little more patient in working for a better shot. Just a thought. He also had an unfortunate turnover at the end of the game. On the plus side, he nutmegged Steven Adams with a gorgeous pass, resulting in a Curry three in the middle of the fourth. 

Maxi (35 min) had an excellent game, stepping in for KP. He had 14 points, including four threes, and a career-high 14 boards. He was the most effective Mav at defending the rim, and Steven Adams was limited to 10 points, being in foul trouble much of the game. Admirable performance by the young German. 

Powell (29 min) and Brunson (23 min) were just okay. The bench was decimated by the advancement of Maxi and Brunson to the starting unit, and only managed to put 28 points on the board (compared to 40 from OKC's second unit). Seth was 3 of 13, but produced two threes and an offensive board in the fourth. Wright had three turnovers, including a critical lost ball down the stretch. Boban was sighted for 11 minutes. He grabbed 6 boards, and had a team-high plus-minus, at +8.


Remarks

Neither Ced nor Jet seemed particularly disturbed by the game, noting that the Mavs were on the road in front of a rambunctious crowd, and missing two starters and Broekhoff. Rick Carlisle was having none of these excuses. He noted that the team had not defended Paul well, and weren't consistent enough in any area of the game. It was a physical game, with a lot of dinged up guys, but they have to do better. Rebounding and penetration were problematic the whole game. The Thunder's playmaking was exceptional, and the Mavs didn't do a good enough job staying in front of them. Notwithstanding all that, the team was in position to win, but couldn't take advantage of their chances. Rick was clearly disappointed with the performance. 

Jason Terry said he is a little discouraged by one thing. He is afraid that Luka is starting to wear down. He played a season-high 40 minutes, and Jet is of the opinion that his teammates need to give him more help.

It appeared to me that the Mavericks were clearly missing Porzingis and Hardaway. Each of those players is good for 10-20 points per night, and KP is the team's best rebounder. With the subs in, the team's rhythm seemed to be thrown off, and Luka had to shoulder a very heavy load. But even at that, they were seven points ahead with less than three minutes to go. I guess they are going to have to go through a certain number of these late-game struggles before they become proficient in clutch situations. It's not the worst loss in the world, but disappointing nonetheless. Hopefully, 2020 will bring better days. 


Next. The Mavs begin a home stand against Brooklyn on Thursday. 

Hope all you MFFLs have a very happy New Year!

Mavs Fall to Lakers in Lackluster Showing

A game that had been heavily hyped turned out to be a bit of a yawner. Mavs just didn't have it. 


Game Story and Analytics

The venue was Staples Center. The Lakers were missing DeMarcus Cousins on a long-term rehab. Mavs entered the game at full strength. Both teams were on the second night of a back-to-back. 

The Lakers took the lead toward the end of the first quarter and never surrendered it. In fact, they took a double-digit lead in the second and never surrendered that. The Mavericks lost Tim Hardaway, Jr. to a hamstring injury in the first quarter. Luka fell awkwardly in connection with a Howard foul in the third. He got up, and eventually returned to the game, but didn't look fully himself.  KP was called for his fifth foul in the third quarter. With 4:39 left in the game, and the Mavs down 13, Rick put the starters back in. They missed six shots and fell further behind. Just a night where too many things went wrong. 

Statistically, Dallas lost the game with extremely poor shooting, combined with failure to guard the rim, and 25 points lost on 18 turnovers. The Mavericks actually got up 11 more shots than the Lakers, and took 20 more three-point shots, but couldn't capitalize. The Lakers had a massive 54 points in the paint -- fully half of their total points. The opponent got to the basket pretty much at will, and the Mavs were battling LA's size advantages all night. The Lakers defense had a lot to do with the Mavericks' failure to score, but the Mavs also missed good looks. The Mavs never even produced a run on either end of the court, and kept turning the ball over in barfworthy fashion. 


Remarks

I don't think it's productive to go through a player-by-player analysis of this match. Luka had a poor game by his lofty standards, scoring only 19 points on 5-14 shooting, and recording a 7:6 assist/turnover ratio. KP was invisible in stretches, and struggled with foul trouble. The bench, for the most part, were ineffectual. There was a Barea sighting, and the little Puerto Rican scored 12 points in 13 minutes, but even the emergency secret sauce was unable to make a dent in the Lakers' dominance. The team missed THJ.  It was painful watching the Mavericks try to guard Anthony Davis. 

The refs were letting the Lakers play very rough, and I thought for a while that the Lakers were able to throw the Mavs off with physical (illegal?) moves. I'm sure that was a factor, but on further consideration, the Mavericks looked off from the jump. They appeared lethargic and lacking in intensity the whole game. Maybe the back-to-back caught up to them, although the starters didn't play the full game against GSW. 

I fear that this game might be a preview of what the young Mavs might look like in the playoffs, when they face teams with size and physicality, the refs let them play, and the opponents focus on locking down Luka. The squad doesn't always respond well to pressure., and we saw a number of mental mistakes in this game. I have a certain degree of optimism over a series, largely because of Carlisle's superior adjustment skills. Also, this is a team that learns fast, and even if they lost a playoff series, I believe that they would benefit greatly from the experience. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. This was one game, and this level of clusterfaff is rare for the Mavs. It is galling to lose this way to the hated Lakers, but it's one game, and even great teams have an occasional off night. 

For now, I'm saying this match was an outlier, and it should serve as a teaching moment. The most concerning aspect of the game were the injuries to Tim and Luka. 


Next. Chris Paul and the Thunder on Tuesday in OKC. 

Keep the faith!

Mavs Blow Warriors Out in San Francisco

If you like watching offense, this was the game for you. A real shootout, with the teams combining for 42 made threes. Fun!


Game Story and Analytics

The Warriors were missing Steph, Klay, and Kevon Looney. The Mavericks were at full strength. 

The Dubs got off to a hot start, with D'Angelo Russell scoring 12 points in under two minutes. The Mavs responded, and the first quarter ended with a Dirk-minded 41-41 scoreline. The shot-fest continued in the second period, and Dallas entered the locker room with a 72-74 deficit. The Mavericks went on an incredible 28-4 run in the middle of the third, and remained in control for the rest of the game. They eventually surrendered a net 10 points from their game-high lead of 30 in the fourth, but still won comfortably. Neither Luka nor Tim played in the final frame, and the other starters had minimal time. 

The game was a bit chippy, with five players T'd up -- Porzingis, Green, Russell, Chriss, and Lee. Luka and Chriss got into it a little when Chriss shoved Luka into a cameraman and Luka gave him the evil eye, but both players calmed down, and the only damage was a technical on Chriss. 

The Mavs defeated the Dubs with a more efficient shot attempt distribution, and better performance at the free-throw line. Both teams got 92 shots off, but 51 of the Dallas attempts were from beyond the arc, while the GSW tried only 39. Both teams were sizzling from long range, with the Mavericks shooting 47% and the Dubs 46%. The Mavs were a perfect 21-21 from the foul line, and the Warriors went 13-17. Dallas was +18 on points from threes, +8 on made free throws, and -6 on points from twos. The Mavericks set a franchise record for made threes in a game, putting 24 on the board. 


Players

Luka (30 min) was back to normal on his second game back from injury. He recorded his ninth triple-double of the season, with an impressive 31-12-15 line. He put on a blistering shooting performance, going 5-8 from three and hitting all 10 of his FTAs. He also had a couple of steals and only 3 turnovers, and had some good defensive plays. His performance was as exciting as it sounds -- the Slovenian knows how to put on a show. Rick deemed his game "amazing" and "phenomenal," and complimented him for setting the table for his teammates. Great to see the young star back to full speed again! With another game looming tomorrow, it was also good to see him get the fourth quarter off.

Porzingis (26 min) had an efficient 18 points and a game-high 4 blocks. His shot was looking good, as he hit 4 of 9 3PTAS, and was 2-3 on 2PTAs. Hopefully, this is a sign of things to come! KP made an effort to gratify those who have been wanting him to post up, attempting to back down Draymond Green, but, alas, the play ended in a turnover. Greg Buckner allowed that Chris Webber "doesn't know what he is talking about," and Rick said he did not consider calling more post-ups for KP.

On the constructive criticism side, KP was bitten by the turnover bug, giving the ball away a team-high 5 times. Two of them were cross-court passes out of bounds, and a couple involved losing the ball off the dribble. Fortunately, no harm done in terms of the final score. On the other hand, Porzee's shotmaking and defense were both highly impressive. 

Seth (25 min) put on a show for Steph, going 4-7 from three-point land in the first three quarters, registering two steals, and playing some decent defense. He and Delon Wright headlined the fourth quarter, both playing all twelve minutes. Some of his threes were breathtaking, especially one over a crowd in the second quarter. Steph and Seth are first and second in the league on three-point percentages, at a scorching 43%. Steph was in a suit on the GSW bench, and must have been proud of li'l bro.

Hardaway (23 min) had another brilliant game, being the team's second-leading scorer with 25 points, hitting 6 of 8 3PTAs, and going 9-13 from the field, including a four-point play. He showed off his and Luka's spectacular chemistry, and defended well. Carlisle praised his shotmaking, defense, leadership, and experience. He noted that Tim had kept the team together in the midst of all the mayhem, and called attention to his veteran presence as an important factor in the team's performance all season long.  

Bench. Wright (22 min) had a fine performance off the bench, with 6-7 shooting, 4 rebounds, and a team-high 3 steals. He and Seth worked well together. Maxi and Justin Jackson both looked good in 21 minutes each. Rick complimented the group for finishing the game "the right way." The entire team finished in positive territory, aside from Brunson, Broekhoff, and Boban, who were all on low minutes.

Russell. D'Angelo Russell torched the Mavericks with 35 unbelievable points, including 9 threes, and was unstoppable from everywhere on the floor. Rick said that the team "threw the kitchen sink" at him, trying man defense, zone, switching, trapping, hybrid defenses, with nothing seeming to slow him down. However, they had a halftime talk on the subject, and ultimately, the Mavs' basic defense got them some traction. Unfortunately, Russell went down in the third quarter after a collision with Luka. He was back in the game in the fourth, but by then, the Mavs had built a substantial cushion. With both Steph and Russell on the floor, GSW will not be lacking for floor spacing. 


Remarks

Rick said his squad had to "find a way" to win this game, and congratulated them for their poise and togetherness in the face of all the "antics" going on. He was proud of his team for defending hard, rebounding, and taking care of the ball, despite a high degree of defensive aggression from Golden State. He opined that good paint attacks led to good threes, and he felt that his team "needed a game like this." I am reading this as an indication that Coach sees progress in terms of the team not falling apart against intense defense.

I thought this was a highly entertaining match. If the Dubs are, in fact, tanking, you couldn't tell it from this performance. The Warriors went very hard, and if Russell had not gotten hurt (shoulder contusion), the game would undoubtedly have been closer. I admire the Mavs for putting the game away early on a FIGABABA and taking care of business on the opponent's very rowdy home court. The focus of the win will inevitably and rightfully be the blistering 3-point shooting, but a lot of other things went right too, and despite the ten-point deficit in garbage time, at no time did the Mavericks come unglued. Good signs. 


Next. The Mavs face LeBron and the Lakers at their house on Sunday. Should be a cracker!

Go Mavs!

Who was the "player of the game" who elevated their game above normal to help the team get the win?

Hello MFFLs!

This is a couple days late, but All Star voting season is upon us. This is a notable time for us as Mavs fans, as we have one definite, and arguably a second, All Star contender on our roster. 

After being robbed of not just a roster spot, but a starting spot as well last season, will this be the year that Luka joins the All Star ranks, and if so, could it be as a starter, or if we dream big a team captain? After being selected to his 1st ASG in 2018 but being unable to play due to injury, has The Unicorn done enough on defense as his offense has been working back into shape to join the ranks again? Will there be any Mavs participating in other parts of the weekend? 

We will see these questions and more answered over the next month. I thought this thread might serve as a nice discussion regarding thoughts on the ASG leading up to the game, and also could serve as a source of information on how to vote so we can do our part as a growing Mavs community to get Luka (and other Mavs) fan vote as high as possible. Let’s get started.

1. How are All Star starters chosen?
Again this season, voting from fans, players, and media pool together to choose 5 starters from each conference. The % of each voting base is unchanged from last season: Fans 50%, Players 25%, Media 25%.

5 players from each conference are chosen as starters, and this is grouped somewhat by position with 2 guards and 3 forwards/centers making up the starting 5.

2. How can I vote?
There are 4 methods to vote detailed below. These can be manipulated to various degrees, and I have ordered them from easiest to hardest.

A. NBA.com
There is a link on the NBA website to vote, and you can pick up to 2 guards and 3 F/C from both East and West on each ballot. Voting requires a 1st name, email address, zip code, and to pass one of those reCAPTCHA deals.

Note: Cookies on the website prevent you from voting more than once per day, but this is easily subverted by opening a private browser window where you can then use multiple emails, or even the same email over and over.

B. NBA App
The NBA has a mobile device app, if you watch League Pass on mobile devices you’ll already have it, otherwise I’m not sure that you would and you’ll have to download it. Voting is pretty easy through the app and requires the same information provided on NBA.com to vote. The downside is that the app keeps track and will only let you vote every 24 hours, but the upsides are that you can vote across multiple devices this way and if you delete and reinstall the app you can vote multiple times a day on the same device (this is just time consuming).

C. Google.com
Google is a host of ASG voting again this year. If you type in “NBA All Star Voting” into Google, the screen will have a section where you can search for players to vote for. This method is a bit different in that you get 10 plain votes and doesn’t worry about positions or conferences, you can spread them out however you want. You also have to have a google account and be signed in. This method is manipulatable in the sense that anyone can make a bunch of google accounts, but the effort is pretty high for this.

D. Google Assistant
I’ve never tried this so have no firsthand experience, but apparently with Google Assistant you can say, “Hey Google, vote for the NBA All Star Game” and somehow vote. For people that have a device with this, it sounds easy enough but I’m not sure.

3. Important Dates
Voting: 12/25/2019 through 1/20/2020 11:59 PM ET.

2-For-1 Dates: 1/2, 1/3, 1/10, 1/16, 1/20
*Dates are considered to run from 12:00 AM ET to 11:59 PM ET
**Every vote on these dates counts as 2 votes

Voting Updates: Fan vote updates will be given on 1/2, 1/9, and 1/16

Starter Announce Date: 1/23 during TNT NBA Tip-off

Reserve Announce Date: 1/30 during TNT NBA Tip-off

4. Voting Tips/Strategy
- Luka counts as a backcourt player this year rather than a frontcourt as he was last year. That means his primary voting competition will be Curry (will probably still get lots of votes even though hurt), Harden, and Lillard. If you want to be objective and pick a team, I guess I can’t blame you, but if your goal is to get Luka in as a starter, ideally you wouldn’t vote for any other high profile competing Western Conference guard. Same applies for Kristaps or anyone else you are targeting to be a starter. Either way, Luka beat all these guys last year in fan votes.

- The leading Western Conference vote getter last year was LeBron who beat Luka by a little less than 400K. Kawhi is the biggest vote getting competitor to move West, and Luka beat him by about 700K. If you want the possibility of Luka being a captain, you would probably avoid any high profile players like these guys on your ballots.

- If you are willing to cheese the system and vote multiple times a day, a private internet browser is by far the easiest way. It may not be within the spirit of the competition, but I don’t think the NBA really cares because they want to be able to point out high voting totals. My strategy is to vote through the NBA app on both my devices each day, once on Google with my regular account and will bother to log into my junk account as well on the 2-for-1 days, and at least 5 more times a day through NBA.com (and likely as much as I think about it on the 2-for-1 days)

Alright, what are you doing? Go vote for the Mavs!

The rotation has shaken out.  It’s good, and the Mavs are legitimate contenders.  One notable roster flaw remains: a pure wing defender who can also keep defenses honest and be happy playing a modest number of minutes.  The job was Jackson’s, but he has failed.  Iggy was excellent in this exact role last season.  He’s available.  He’s won titles.  Unless the Mav’s have a health or attitude related concern, it’s time to make a move.

On the national television broadcast from TNT they commented in some detail on the way the Mavs use Kristaps Porzingis offensively, particularly the relatively lack of inside play or 'Post up play'.  The remarks were replied to directly by Rick Carlisle Carlisle responds about the post up  after a reporter referenced the criticism that aired on the National Broadcast.   

While acknowledging respect for Coach Carlisle, a coach with an NBA championship on his resume and respected as a top coach in the NBA around the league, the remarks got pretty, pretty sharp at points from Barkley, Shaq and even Kenny respectfully criticized the general way Porzingis offense is being used saying the ratio of inside shots, close to the basket should be more like 7 to 3 inside vs 3 pointers rather than the reverse it seems to often be now. 

https://youtu.be/L1UzpWZgu_Q?t=767 - Inside The NBA | Charles & Shaq "strong reacts": Mavericks 102-98 Spurs, Jazz  

Its all part of the bigger trends in NBA offense, guard dominated vs center dominated, 3-point revolution etc.  
My general thought is Rick is right overall about the trends of the league and the facts bear that out especially when we talk about post up play and its massive decline across the league. 

On the other hand I do agree somewhat that there is a problem evident sometimes in the way some coaches, Rick Carlisle included, skew perimeter offense even at times where inside play from big men would make much more sense.   
The massive case in point came just the other day when the Mavericks rotations and offense blew a massive late game 30 point lead to go into the history books as one of the worst blown leads of all time in the league. 

Quote:It ended up being the biggest comeback in franchise history for the Raptors, who trailed by 30 points late in the third quarter. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, it was the first 30-point comeback by an NBA team in a regular-season game in a decade

Quote:the post-up is much deader now than five years ago. Since the 2014-15 season, the leaguewide post-up rate has been cut nearly in half, down to just 4.7 percent of possessions thus far in 2019-20.