The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Atlanta Hawks, 118-117, to push their record to 12-14. Luka Doncic registered a double double 28-10-10 to lead all Mavericks in the score. Trae Young scored 25 points, but John Collins led his team with 33 points of his own.
Both sides exchanged buckets throughout the first quarter, although the Mavericks failed to find the rhythm from three. The Hawks managed a six-point lead in the middle of the period, but the Mavericks were able to narrow the gap and end the quarter with 33-32.
The attack slowed to start the second for both teams, and after several empty possessions for the Mavericks, the Hawks won 42-39 in the middle of the third. The Mavericks went cold for three and lost 62-52 after two.
The Mavericks’ attack looked a bit more sharp to open the second half, with Doncic exploring exchanges for the youngest Young to prepare Willie Cauley-Stein for some finishing on the rim. After the first timeout, the Mavericks reduced their deficit to just seven, but after a horn from Jalen Brunson they led 90-81 at the end of the third.
Tim Hardaway Jr. woke up after scoring three points in the first half to go on a personal 7-0 run to take the Hawks to just two. Hardaway continued on fire, and after a Brunson three, the Hawks were forced to give a 107-101 timeout. We went on to see an exciting five-minute clutch, and the Mavericks held on to victory after Gallinari missed a shot for the win on the bell.
Very necessary, feel good, come back, save the clutch time
The Mavericks overcame their biggest deficit this season with a win, returning from 13 to five minutes to the end of the third. His previous mark was 12 in the Nuggets win in overtime on January 7, but tonight’s victory was especially unique because of the unexpected change in energy and composure that the Mavericks exhibited. Often, whenever Dallas faces a double-digit deficit, body language becomes unpleasant and the effort fails.
Substitute pair Hardaway and Brunson lit up the fourth half and made sure it didn’t. THJ was exceptional, scoring 13 points in six minutes to tie the game, including an individual 7-0 streak. Brunson, who scored 11 of his own in the fourth, could be the second most reliable Maverick at this point in the season. His “shoot first, shoot later, always shoot” approach made him decisive and aggressive. Bonus: he even made a great pass to the open Dorian Finney-Smith, who hit a corner three with 1:18 left.
The three-point shot wavered between the halves again
At least this time it happened in the right direction. The Mavericks hit a horrible 4 out of 19, good for 21%, away in the first half. When Porzingis, Hardaway, Brunson and Doncic make several attempts and make ONE combined, it can be (and was) very painful to watch. The shots were mostly of good quality, reinforcing the role players’ claim throughout the season of being unable to hit open attempts.
In the second half, luck finally favored the Mavericks, who got 10 of 16 hits out of three by 62.5%. Each player who hit a three in the period hit at least half of his attempts, including Hardaway, who wants 3 in 3 from a distance in the fourth.
It just shows how volatile and random a three-point offense like that of the Mavericks can be when looking at small sample sizes. That’s why the career spikes of THJ, Finney-Smith and others last season were so unexpected. That’s also why the attack looks worse this year, as some of those players have returned to the average. Fortunately, the full strength squad can keep pace and hit those shots consistently.
The Mavericks decided to overcome the Hawks instead of stopping them
The first five defenses that started the season are a thing of the distant past, with the Mavericks showing defensive numbers below average in the last 15 games. Today was no different, with the Hawks scoring 121.8 points for 100 possessions tonight. They explored a variety of clashes using Trae Young’s speed to get good moves from other players. The only case that comes to mind where the Mavericks’ one-on-one defense at Young was enough was Josh Richardson’s dispute with Young’s base jumper to end the first half.
In the previous confrontation between the two teams, the Mavericks tried to arrest Young with a main defender, like Richardson, and an assistant, like Kleber. The strategy was not as effective tonight, as Young easily found rolls open to the edge and accumulated 15 assists. Maxi Kleber, in particular, really worked hard tonight while working at COVID.
The New Orleans Pelicans visit the Mavericks on Friday for another game at 6:30 pm. It can be viewed on ESPN or the NBA League Pass.