Despite the absence of Mavs star Luka Doncic due to right knee pαin versus the Warriors, Dallas prevailed.

 

The Dallas Mavericks (47-30) faced the Golden State Warriors (42-35) and tried to make up for Luka Doncic’s absence due to right knee pαin. The Mavs triumphed 108-106, defying the odds.

With a scorching shooting start, the Mavs quickly led the Warriors 29–13. Dallas is up thanks in part to Washington’s 11 points already scored. In fact, by 6:23 of the first quarter, Washington had already outscored Golden State 11–10 on its own.

The Mavs’ quick pace and h𝖔t shooting were effective in the beginning, but the Warriors capitalized to pull away before the first quarter was out. Golden State went on a 19-2 run to end the quarter, with Chris Paul’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer giving them the early advantage.

Derrick Jones Jr.’s catch-and-shoot 3-pointer put the Mavs ahead 51-46, but the Warriors went on an 8-1 run to cap the half and take a 54-52 lead into halftime. Irving’s catch-and-shoot three-pointer gave the Mavs a 63-58 lead in the third quarter, despite neither team being able to take the lead.

Midway through the third quarter, both teams were trading leads. Curry put Golden State ahead with a floater over Irving, and Irving used a cunning move behind the back to set up a and-one finish that put Dallas back ahead. After Washington completed a floater on a handoff from Dwight Powell out of the corner, the Mavs did establish a four-point lead.

Irving left the game late in the third quarter, with the score tied at 71 points. Dallas had a 79-76 lead going into the fourth quarter when Curry returned to the court for the last possession of the third quarter and missed a high-arching step-back 3-pointer against a double team.

In the first minute of the last quarter, Washington finished a and-one to give the Mavs a six-point lead. He then stopped Green on a drive, giving Dallas more momentum. With 10:42 remaining in the game, Irving took advantage of a closeout to find Gafford on a lob out of the dunker position, increasing the Mavs’ lead to 84-76.

Curry navigated the lane for a layup on a Gortat screen, but Hardaway almost completely negated that play by dribbling out in transition for a breakaway dunk. Curry closed the gap between Golden State and Dallas to five points with a deep pull-up 3-pointer, but he missed his subsequent try from beyond the arc. Dallas had violated the shot clock. With 8:46 remaining in the game, Irving reacted by drawing a foul on a putback attempt and converting both of his free throws to give the Mavs an 88-81 lead.

Following Curry, Gafford changed to pick-and-roll coverage with a double, giving Washington a chance to score on the other end. Dallas got up to a nine-point lead. It worked well to put more emphasis on forcing Curry to work for scoring opportunities than on getting clean looks to counter switches or drop coverage.

After a string of scoreless possessions for Dallas, Irving made two free throws and a contested pull-up 3-pointer before attacking in transition and drawing a shooting foul to change the game’s momentum. This sequence put Dallas ahead by 10 points halfway through the last quarter.

 

The Mavs attempted to blitz Curry, but the Warriors capitalized on the play to set up a brief roll sequence that culminated in an alley-oop slam from Gary Payton II from the dunker position. Washington immediately answered for the Mavs, making a 3-pointer from the top of the key to keep Dallas comfortably up.

Down the stretch, Golden State persisted in cutting into the Mavs’ lead. With 58.7 seconds remaining, Dallas called a timeout as the Warriors quickly went up 8-2, capped by a strong pull-up 3-pointer by Curry. Irving also made a clutch pull-up from mid-range while dodging a double team.

Jones missed an open 3-pointer from the corner after Irving was blitzed and the Warriors stole the ball from him. Following a defensive stop by the Mavs, Washington had an opportunity to draw a blocking foul in transition. Golden State attempted to challenge the play, but was unsuccessful because Curry’s right heel was on the charge circle. With 22.5 seconds left, Washington split the two free throws to hold Dallas ahead by only two.

Curry was used as a Gh𝖔st screener to give him room to maneuver and an opportunity to att𝔞ck off the catch. With 12.4 seconds left, he took a step back from mid-range to tie the score at 106-106. After the Mavs inbounded the ball, Irving drew a double team on the catch. Hardaway then drove the ball and finished it off to Washington, giving the Mavs a two-point lead again with 4.5 seconds remaining. The ball found Thompson in the corner for a last-second shot after he had blitzed Curry, but he missed as the buzzer went off.

Kidd gave an update on Doncic’s injury, but he didn’t say much about how the player could feel going into the team’s upcoming match. Instead of jockeying for a particular seed in the Western Conference standings, the emphasis is on his health.

“[His injury] shouldn’t be long-term, so we’ll see,” Kidd stated.

In the near future, the Mavs will play the Houston Rockets in the afternoon on Sunday. It would require a lot for Doncic to sit out this European primetime tipoff.