After Tuesday night’s home tilt and win over the Memphis Grizzlies, the Dallas Mavericks traveled to Washington, D.C., to open a three-game road trip with an away game against the Washington Wizards on Thursday night. Entering Thursday night’s game, Dallas was a red-hot team with a 14-8 record and a five-game winning streak, while Washington was an ice-cold team with a 2-17 record who lost 15 straight games and was headed toward the No. 1 draft pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
The Mavericks defeated the Wizards 137-101 in blowout fashion at the Capital One Arena. Dallas improved to 15-8, while Washington fell to 2-18. Kyrie Irving led the Mavericks with 25 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Luka Doncic followed up with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. Daniel Gafford added 16 points and eight rebounds. Quentin Grimes had 14 points, four rebounds, and one assist. Jaden Hardy scored 13 points and one rebound.
Dallas Mavericks at Washington Wizards Recap
The Dallas Mavericks and Washington Wizards’ game was action-packed from start to finish. The Mavericks ruled out Naji Marshall with an upper respiratory infection and Dante Exum with right wrist surgery. The Wizards ruled out Saddiq Bey with a torn ACL surgery, Tristan Vukcevic with a knee injury and a two-way contract, Kyle Kuzma with a rib injury, and Corey Kispert and Kyshawn George with ankle sprains.
The Mavericks’ starting lineup consisted of Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, PJ Washington Jr., and Dereck Lively II. The Mavericks jumped out to a 10-0 run to start the game, with the first three-pointer from Doncic, who is 24% from the three-point line this season. The Mavericks poured in the points, including Spencer Dinwiddie’s stepback three-pointer, and led 31-22 at the end of the first quarter. The Mavericks made it rain in D.C. with three-pointers from Thompson. The Mavericks were up 68-50 at halftime.
The Mavericks’ scoring surge resumed in the third quarter, as Lively II dunked over three Wizards players, Irving created a rim shot, and Doncic blocked a Wizards player’s field goal attempt. The Mavericks reached the 100-point plateau and took a commanding 101-77 lead after three quarters. The Mavericks’ surge in the fourth quarter included Doncic’s pass to Jazian Gortman for a rim shot and Doncic’s triple-double. The Mavericks won 137-101 in regulation.
Dallas Mavericks at Washington Wizards Highlights
The Dallas Mavericks and Washington Wizards’ game featured many highlights, such as Spencer Dinwiddie changing the minds of some if not most, fans. Dinwiddie, 31, signed a one-year, $3.3 million free-agent contract with the Mavericks this offseason, but there were no guarantees about how much playing time he could receive. Dinwiddie has delivered in recent games. Most recently, Dinwiddie hit back-to-back three-pointers to put the Mavericks up 116-111, and the team rallied from a 15-point deficit to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday.
For the Mavericks, various sources have expressed their opinions on Klay Thompson, who has been dealing with a left foot plantar fascia. The Mavericks went undefeated without Thompson, 34, in a four-game stretch. Thompson’s return has been highly anticipated, but it’s important to remember Thompson will return with limits, which arguably makes him the worst offseason acquisition. Quentin Grimes has seemed to be a starting-caliber guard after scoring 20+ points in three straight games. Both Grimes’ production and minutes have increased.
And, for the Wizards, the Wizards’ rookie point guard Bub Carrington reportedly hopes to lead by example. Carrington, 19, started the 2024-25 NBA season in the starting lineup but was sent to the bench when veteran point guard Malcolm Brogdon returned to the court after recovering from right thumb surgery. But Carrington took his benching in stride and ultimately received an expanded role in which he posted a team-high 13 points and seven rebounds and showed the importance of rebounding as a guard.
Final Thoughts
The Dallas Mavericks rallied from a 15-point deficit to defeat the Memphis Grizzlies, 121-116, in front of a sellout crowd of 20,277 at American Airlines Center on Tuesday. The Mavericks finished Group C play with a 3-1 record and earned a ticket to the 2024 Emirates NBA Cup’s Knockout Round. The Mavericks will play the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center in the quarterfinal. The winner will head to Las Vegas, Nevada, for the semifinal.
The Mavericks keep on winning despite dealing with sick and injured players. Their ability to overcome adversity after significant hits by the injury and illness bugs is admirable. They went 5-1 without Luka Doncic. They went without Naji Marshall, who had an undisclosed illness, on Tuesday, but Mavs.com reported that head coach Jason Kidd will be excited when he has a totally healthy roster.
The Mavericks will travel to Toronto, Canada, to take on the Toronto Raptors on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Eastern. The Mavericks might be affected by jet lag, a temporary sleep problem, as the Raptors might benefit from home-court advantage at Scotiabank Arena. The Raptors’ most recent opponent was the Thunder on Thursday. The Raptors’ game against the Thunder was the former’s third game of a five-game homestand.
