Category: Dallas Mavericks Blog

Mavericks blog – Dallas Mavericks blog. A great Mavs news blog

Mavericks NBA season restart schedule announced

The Dallas Mavericks recently announced their eight-game schedule for the restart of the 2019-20 season, which will tip-off against the Houston Rockets on Friday, July 31 at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN at The Arena at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.

The 22 teams traveling to Orlando will play eight “seeding games,” as selected from their remaining regular-season contests. Following their matchup with the Rockets, the Mavericks will face Phoenix (Aug. 2), Sacramento (Aug. 4), the L.A. Clippers (Aug. 6), Milwaukee (Aug. 8), Utah (Aug. 10), Portland (Aug. 11) and Phoenix again (Aug. 13).

Fox Sports Southwest will carry all eight of the Mavericks’ seeding games with Mark Followill, Derek Harper and Jeff “Skin” Wade calling the action remotely from their studio in Las Colinas, Texas. In addition to the matchup with Houston, ESPN will also televise the Mavericks’ game against Milwaukee. TNT will air the club’s showdown with the Clippers and NBA TV will show the team’s game against Utah. The league and its broadcast and technology partners are collaborating to enhance game telecasts and bring fans an immersive, interactive viewing experience.

ESPN 103.3 FM will air all eight games with Chuck Cooperstein and Brad Davis broadcasting from the Mavericks locker room at American Airlines Center. Victor Villalba will provide the play-by-play in Spanish on 1207 AM from the Univision Deportes studio.

Dallas went into the NBA hiatus with a record of 40-27 (.597) and currently sits in seventh place in the Western Conference entering the restart.

The restart will include strict health and safety protocols and the goal of taking collective action to combat systemic racism and promote social justice. Games will resume with 22 teams playing at The Arena, HP Field House and VISA Athletic Center at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex with no fans in attendance.

Following the seeding games, the seven teams in each conference with the highest combined winning percentages across regular-season matchups and seeding contests will be the first through seventh seeds for the playoffs. If the team with the eighth-best combined winning percentage (regular season and seeding games) in a conference is more than four games ahead of the team with the ninth-best combined winning percentage in the same conference, then the team with the eighth-best winning percentage would be the eighth playoff seed in that conference.

If the team with the eighth-best combined winning percentage in a conference (Team 8) is four games or fewer ahead of the team with the ninth-best combined winning percentage in the same conference (Team 9), then those two teams would compete in a play-in tournament to determine the eighth playoff seed in the conference. The play-in tournament will be double elimination for Team 8 and single elimination for Team 9.

The NBA’s standard playoff tiebreaker procedures will be used to break any ties on the basis of winning percentage. Once the 16-team playoff field is set, the NBA Playoffs will proceed in a traditional conference-based format with four rounds and best-of-seven series in each round. The 2020 NBA Finals will end no later than Oct. 13.

2019-20 DALLAS MAVERICKS RESTART SCHEDULE

Friday, July 31 vs. Houston
Sunday, Aug. 2 @ Phoenix
Tuesday, Aug. 4 @ Sacramento
Thursday, Aug. 6 vs. L.A. Clippers
Saturday, Aug. 8 vs. Milwaukee
Monday, Aug. 10 @ Utah
Tuesday, Aug. 11 vs. Portland
Thursday, Aug. 13 @ Phoenix

Dallas Mavericks practice facility will open May 28

The Dallas Mavericks, in compliance with NBA guidance and working closely with team medical professionals, will open their practice facility for voluntary player workouts beginning Thursday, May 28.

Mavericks players may choose to access the practice facility as per protocols established by the NBA and local health officials.

All Mavericks facilities remain closed to non-essential staff, media and the public until further notice.

Will the 2020-21 NBA season start on Christmas?

Here’s the Fort Worth Star Telegram reporting on Mavericks owner Mark Cuban’s take on fitting the puzzle pieces together regarding how the rest of this season may play out and when the 2020-21 season might begin:

Mark Cuban believes the NBA can still salvage its 2019-20 season, despite it being suspended for two months and counting amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Dallas Mavericks owner pointed to Dec. 25 as the start date for next season and then said you just have to work backward for a potential timeline to resume this season. Most teams, Cuban said, would not be playing an extended schedule as there’s a limited number of teams that would advance through the playoffs.

That, he said, would give the league more leeway as to a hard deadline to resume this season.

“How much of an offseason do we need for the draft, workouts and guys to rest?” Cuban said during an interview on ESPN 103.3 FM on Monday. “Worst-case — we kind of squished the schedule and started late July, early August. That’s just me speculating. Go play a few warm-up games to finish out the season and finalize playoff positioning, then play the playoffs.”

Even without the coronavirus pandemic reshaping much of the world’s schedule, it was possible that future NBA seasons were going to start later in the year. The current suspended-play situation only seems to increase that possibility.

At this point, we’re all playing a waiting game that revolves around health and safety above everything else.

Rick Carlisle amused by quick cameo in Michael Jordan documentary

Here’s ESPN.com with a fun item about Mavs coach Rick Carlisle:

Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle responded to his brief, not-so-glamorous appearance in the opening episode of ESPN’s “The Last Dance” with a wry bit of self-deprecating humor.

“There must have been an exhaustive search to find footage of me actually PLAYING in an NBA playoff game,” Carlisle wrote in a text reply to an inquiry about his thoughts on the clip that showed him as a Boston Celtics reserve guard being torched by Michael Jordan for a dunk after a baseline spin.

The first two episodes of The Last Dance were mostly introductory, setting the stage for the real meat of the series. There are eight more episodes, airing over the next four Sunday nights.

Mavs guard Jalen Brunson undergoes surgery

Dallas Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson underwent surgery today to address an injury to the labrum of his right shoulder.

Brunson suffered the injury in the first quarter of the Mavericks game at Atlanta on Feb. 22. The second-year guard has seen action in 57 games (16 starts) for the Mavericks this season with averages of 8.2 points, 3.3 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 17.9 minutes per contest.

No timetable for his return has been set at this time.

Stats and notes on Luka Doncic triple-doubles

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) on

Mavericks second-year guard/forward Luka Doncic, who doesn’t turn 21 until 2/28/20, already owns the record for the most triple-doubles by a player before his 21st birthday in NBA history (15). He recorded eight as a rookie alone, breaking Magic Johnson’s previous such record of seven, which was set before the Mavericks franchise was even formed in 1980 (Johnson’s record had stood since 3/30/80).

Doncic’s eight triple-doubles in 2018-19 not only marked a Dallas rookie record (previous most: 4 by Jason Kidd in 1994-95), but also represented the third-most by any rookie in the history of the league (behind Oscar Robertson’s 26 in 1960-61 and Ben Simmons’ 12 in 2017-18).

His eight triple-doubles last year were also one off of Jason Kidd’s record for the most by a Maverick in any one season in franchise history (Kidd had 9 as a second-year player for Dallas in 1995-96).

Kidd holds the team-record for most triple-doubles with 21. After earning NBA Rookie of the Year honors last season, Doncic has picked up right where he left off. He has recorded five 30-point triple-doubles in 2019-20 and now has six for his career. It’s the most 30-point triple-doubles by a player before turning 21 in NBA history. In fact, LeBron James (2) is the only other player to produce multiple 30-point triple-doubles before his 21st birthday.

What’s more, Doncic has set franchise marks for most 30-point triple-doubles (6) and 20-point triple-doubles (13). He’s the only Maverick to record a 40-point triple-double (42 points, 11 rebounds, 12 assists vs. San Antonio 11/18/19). Doncic and James are also the only two players in league history to produce a
40-point triple-double for their 21st birthday.

Spencer Dinwiddie and Luka Doncic named NBA Players of the Week

Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie and Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic were named East and West NBA Players of the Week for gamesplayed from Monday, Nov. 18, through Sunday, Nov 24, 2019.

And this is fun: It’s the first Players of the Week award for either player.

Dinwiddie led Brooklyn to a 3-1 record on the week, recording averages of 25.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.3 steals in 33.3 minutes per game. Dinwiddie began the week by totaling 28 points, five rebounds and eight assists in 33 minutes in a loss to the Indiana Pacers on Nov. 18. He followed up that performance by leading Brooklyn to the first of a season-best three straight victories, registering 20 points, four rebounds, eight assists and two steals in 37 minutes in a 101-91 win over the Charlotte Hornets on Nov. 20. Dinwiddie then posted 23 points, seven assists and two steals in 28 minutes in a 116-97 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Nov. 22. The six-year NBA veteran rounded out the week by registering his second 30-point game of the season, totaling 30 points, four rebounds, four assists and no turnovers in 35 minutes in a 103-101 win at the New York Knicks on Nov. 24.

Doncic (6-7, 230) led the Mavericks to a perfect 4-0 week with averages of 37.0 points (.554 FG%, .444 3FG%, .788 FT%), 8.5 rebounds and 11.8 assists per game and victories over San Antonio (Nov. 18), Golden State (Nov. 20), Cleveland (Nov. 22) and Houston (Nov. 24). He posted at least 30 points and 10 assists in all four games, becoming the youngest player in NBA history (20 years, 269 days) to record four consecutive 30-point, 10-assist efforts (the previous youngest was Oscar Robertson at 22 years, 34 days). He also led all players outright in scoring all in four games and led the Mavericks outright in assists in all four.

Mavs forward Ding Yanyuhang undergoes knee surgery

Dallas Mavericks forward Ding Yanyuhang underwent arthroscopic surgery to his right knee. The surgery was performed by Dr. Daniel Worrel at the Carrell Clinic in Dallas.

“Ding’s successful return to the court is the number one goal for all of us,” Mavericks President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Donnie Nelson said. “Ding will start rehab immediately, and we all look forward to his full recovery.”

“I’m appreciative of all the support the Mavericks and Legends organizations have given me this season,” Ding said through a translator. “I’m getting great medical treatment here in Dallas. I look forward to a successful rehab process and hope to get back on the court in the near future.”

Ding will rehabilitate his knee at Baylor Physical Therapy in Frisco, Texas in conjunction with the Texas Legends.

Warriors stars praise Luka Doncic

Several Warriors stars as well as head coach Steve Kerr had big praise for Mavs rookie Luka Doncic, as reported by the Dallas Morning News:

The Warriors had beaten Dallas 10 straight times and 17 of the previous 18 meetings. They were impressed with their first live look at Mavericks rookie Luka Doncic, who scored a team-high 24 points and pulled down nine rebounds.

“He’s great; a great player,” said Kerr, who before the game compared 6-7 Doncic to a five-tool baseball player. “He’s got a lot of skill and a lot of guts. I thought he played a great game.” …

“You could tell he’s been playing pro for a long time,” said Warriors guard Klay Thompson, who scored 22 points but missed 15 of 24 shots, including a 16-footer that would have tied the score at 110.

“He’s got great poise. He gets to his spots, and he’s going to be a cornerstone of this franchise for a long time.” …

“I like him a lot,” Durant said. “He’s polished. He’s skilled, and you can tell he’s played professional basketball already. They got a great guy in him to lead this franchise in the future. Luka and Dennis [Smith Jr.] play well together.”

It’s still early in the season but so far, Doncic has been the league’s best rookie.

Mavs enjoying a 4-game winning streak

The Dallas Mavericks are on a 4-game winning streak and now boast a respectable 7-8 season record. They’re being led in scoring by Luka Doncic at 19.5 ppg, followed by Harrison Barnes at 16.5 ppg, Wesley Matthews at 16.2 ppg, Dennis Smith Jr. at 14.5 ppg and DeAndre Jordan at 10.8 ppg plus 13.2 rpg. Doncic, also contributing 6.6 rpg and 4.2 apg, is having an absolutely fantastic rookie season. Here’s the Dallas Morning News with more:

If you’re looking for a validation of the Mavericks’ defense, remember that Kevin Durant missed seven of his last eight shots (and 15 of 24 overall). And Durant and Klay Thompson both missed midrange shots in the final minute that could have changed the outcome. “Those are shots they can make but our guys worked awful hard wearing on them during the game to make those shots a little more difficult,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “When you work that hard, you get a little luck once in a while like that.” Harrison Barnes has been a good defender and Dorian Finney-Smith always gives his best effort at that end of the court. The Mavericks have limited the four opponents in the winning streak to under 93 points per game. That includes the 68 points that Utah scored on Wednesday, which obviously skews the numbers. But holding three of four teams under 100 and Golden State to 109 rates as a defensive vice-grip these days in the score-fest that is the NBA.

Next up for the Mavs is a road game against the Grizzlies on Monday, followed by a pair of home games against the Nets Wednesday and the Celtics Saturday.