The Dallas Mavericks opened a two-game homestand starting with the Brooklyn Nets on Monday. The Mavericks have been relying on Anthony Davis’s return to help secure wins necessary for the playoffs, with seven games left in the regular season. But the Mavericks fell to the Nets 113-109 at the American Airlines Center. Dallas dropped to 37-39, while Brooklyn improved to 25-51.
Daniel Gafford led the Mavericks with 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists. PJ Washington Jr. followed up with 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists. Klay Thompson added 13 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists. Anthony Davis had 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. Max Christie scored 12 points and 3 rebounds. Spencer Dinwiddie recorded 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 8 assists. Jaden Hardy tallied 9 points and 1 assist.
Dallas Mavericks vs. Brooklyn Nets Recap
The Dallas Mavericks ruled out Dante Exum with a left hand fracture, Dereck Lively II with a right ankle stress fracture, Kyrie Irving with an ACL tear and left knee sprain, and Olivier-Maxence Prosper with a right wrist sprain. The Brooklyn Nets ruled out Cameron Johnson with a lower back contusion, Cam Thomas with a left hamstring strain, Day’Ron Sharpe with a right knee sprain, and Noah Clowney with a right ankle sprain.
The Mavericks’ starting lineup featured Spencer Dinwiddie, Klay Thompson, PJ Washington Jr., Anthony Davis, and Daniel Gafford. Gafford, also known as “The Landlord,” returned from a 21-game absence due to a Grade 3 right MCL sprain. The Nets’ starting lineup featured Jalen Wilson, Ziaire Williams, Nic Claxton, Keon Johnson, and D’Angelo Russell.
The first quarter was a back-and-forth affair, with both teams exchanging leads. PJ Washington Jr. finished at the rim, while D’Angelo Russell buried back-to-back three-pointers. The Mavericks settled for a 29-25 lead at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter saw both teams going back and forth. Daniel Gafford soared for a two-handed rim rocker, while Drew Timme buried a three-pointer. The Mavericks took a 63-58 lead into halftime.
The scoring slowed down in the third quarter but picked up by both teams. Daniel Gafford threw down a putback dunk, while Nic Claxton threw down a slam dunk. The Mavericks held on for an 87-84 lead after three quarters. The fourth quarter saw a slow start, but picked up the pace. Jaden Hardy nailed a three-point bucket, while Drew Timme threw down a putback slam. The Nets won 113-109 in regulation.
Mavericks vs. Nets Highlights
The Dallas Mavericks vs. Brooklyn Nets game featured multiple highlights, such as WFAA’s report of Mark Cuban responding to a Facebook post criticizing him. On Friday, Gavin Mulloy, the former event and venue manager of the Mavericks, posted on his personal Facebook, “Cuban should be run out of Dallas.” Cuban responded, “I made money 2 out of 23 years I was the majority owner. Lost hundreds of millions of dollars.”
“I fully expected to run basketball. The NBA wouldn’t let me put it in the contract. They took it out,” Cuban wrote. “I thought [the Adelsons] would stick to their word because they didn’t know the first thing about running a team. Someone obviously changed their mind.” Cuban still owns a minority stake in the Mavericks, but his role with the Mavericks’ basketball operations was diminished — a demotion he said he didn’t sign up for.
For the Mavericks, the Bleacher Report’s headline of Luka Doncic’s first game against the Mavericks produced a notable piece of sports memorabilia. Doncic’s February 25 matchup between his new team and his former team ended in a 107-99 win for the Los Angeles Lakers and a triple-double for Doncic. Doncic’s game-worn jersey from that night has sold at an auction for $60,600.
And, for the Brooklyn Nets, ESPN’s report of the Nets signing a G League forward, Drew Timme, to a multi-year contract on Friday. Timme, now 24, was undrafted during the 2023 NBA Draft following a decorated four-year career as an All-American at Gonzaga. Timme has been averaging 23.9 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 4.1 assists in 29 games (28 starts) for the Nets’ G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, this season.
Final Thoughts
The Dallas Mavericks not only defeated the Chicago Bulls 120-119 at the United Center on Saturday. The Mavericks also moved into the ninth seed in the Western Conference standings, thanks to the Orlando Magic’s 121-91 blowout of the Sacramento Kings at the Kia Center that day. This was the final game for Brandon Williams, who was on the Mavericks’ roster for 50 games — the NBA’s maximum for two-way players.
In his hometown, Chicago, Anthony Davis recorded his 1,800th career block at 3:14 of the first quarter, becoming the 25th player in NBA history to reach the milestone. Davis also became the 11th player in NBA history to total 18,000+ points and 1,800+ blocks, joining Hakeem Olajuwon, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tim Duncan, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Shaquille O’Neal, Robert Parish, Dwight Howard, Kevin Garnett, and Pau Gasol.
Klay Thompson recorded his 200th three-pointer of the season after his fourth three-pointer at 10:50 of the third quarter in Chicago. Thompson became the second player in NBA history to record 10+ seasons with 200 or more three-pointers. Thompson also became the fourth player in franchise history to garner at least 200 three-pointers in a season.
Seven Mavericks scored in double figures in Chicago: Klay Thompson (20), PJ Washington Jr. (19), Anthony Davis (18), Kai Jones (15), Spencer Dinwiddie (14), Naji Marshall (14), and Brandon Williams (12). The Mavericks improved to 8-1 when they had 7+ players with 10+ points. The Mavericks finished with seven players in double digits for the second time in their last four games and concluded the four-game road trip with a 3-1 record.
Kai Jones made a quick bounce-back against the Bulls. Just two days before Saturday, Jones left the Mavericks’ game against the Orlando Magic with a left hip contusion after playing just seven minutes. But Jones shook off the injury to fill the stat sheet. Jones told Mavs.com, “I’ll be quite frank with you. I just did an Epsom salt bath the night I got into Chicago and did my stretch routine and everything felt better the next morning.”
After missing two games with a left ankle sprain, PJ Washington Jr. made a triumphant return on Saturday and finished with 19 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks against the Bulls. Washington Jr. said of his aches and pains, “I think I’m just trying to go out there and forget about it and try to work myself into the game.” The Dallas Mavericks will conclude the two-game homestand by hosting the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Central.
