The 2024-25 NBA regular season has come to an end. The NBA Play-In Tournament is set to begin, and the Dallas Mavericks are gearing up to take on the Sacramento Kings at the Golden 1 Center Wednesday night. The matchup is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Pacific on TNT. The Mavericks and Kings finished in the Western Conference standings as the tenth and ninth seeds, respectively. Read on for further details.
Dallas Mavericks Regular Season Finale
The Dallas Mavericks not only lost to the Memphis Grizzlies in a 132-97 blowout at the FedExForum on Sunday afternoon but also lost their newly signed guard Brandon Williams due to an abdominal injury in the first quarter.
Williams was replaced by Power Forward Kai Jones, and the former went to the locker room shortly after. Williams will be evaluated to determine the severity of the injury. If Williams is unable to return, Jones and Center Dwight Powell will likely see additional playing time.
Hopefully worst doesn’t come to worst for the Mavericks surrounding Williams’ injury. However, Mavericks Head Coach Jason Kidd might’ve already been in a frenzy. Williams rejoiced after signing a two-year standard contract on Thursday. Kidd reportedly stressed the desire to make sure the Mavericks exited Sunday’s game without any injuries, but the injury bug bit the team again.
Sacramento Kings’ Regular Season Finale
The Sacramento Kings defeated the Phoenix Suns 109-98 at the Golden 1 Center Sunday afternoon. Domantas Sabonis and Jonas Valanciunas each had a double-double. Sabonis had 20 points and 12 rebounds for his 61st double-double of the season. Valanciunas had 22 points and 10 rebounds. The Kings clinched home-court advantage for the Kings’ first Play-In Tournament game.
The Suns ended the regular season with a close game at halftime, only to collapse in the loss. However, guards Grayson Allen and Tyus Jones made the game interesting with 20 and 17 points, respectively. Suns stars Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal, and Nick Richards were all out for Phoenix.
Mavericks-Kings Preview
The Dallas Mavericks enter the Play-In Tournament game as the road team with a 39-43 record. Meanwhile, the Sacramento Kings serve as the home team with a 40-42 record. The Mavericks finished the regular season with a loss. The Kings wrapped up the season with a win.
Neither team had a losing skid or a winning streak, so Wednesday’s game might be a thriller that goes down to the wire. The Mavericks’ attention shifts to the Kings, as the winner of the Kings vs. Mavericks game will play the loser of Tuesday night’s game between the Golden State Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies hold a 3-1 lead in the season series, so the Mavericks might want to face the Warriors instead.
The Kings swept the Mavericks 3-0 in the season series, but the Mavericks seem to be confident this time around. Mavericks Guard Max Christie told Mavs.com, “Since I’ve been here they’ve beaten us twice, so it’s good for us if we can come in with a chip on our shoulder, especially at their place … That place is really hard to win in a playoff atmosphere, so we’re looking forward to that challenge.”
Christie added, “I think if we can get past that game, then that’ll help us hopefully get into the playoffs. But again, that game is going to be tough, so we got to hunker down.” Christie has a point. “Hunker down” means that the Mavericks must make sure they take care of the intangibles because either team can walk away with a win.
Sacramento’s home-court advantage could give the team an edge. The Kings’ roster is loaded, but the team must maintain the suddenly improved defense. If the Kings win both Play-In Tournament games this week, they’ll face the No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
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