The Dallas Mavericks came into Denver riding a three-game winning streak after losing their season-opener to the Atlanta Hawks. The Mavericks(3-2) were playing their first back-to-back game of the season on Friday, and it showed.
The Mavericks got off to another slow start and trailed by 11 at halftime. In the third quarter, Dallas would entirely fall apart. The Nuggets(3-2) led by as many as 35 points. Ultimately, they would defeat Dallas 106-75.
The Great for the Mavericks:
Nothing good came from this game. Dallas was never in this one on Friday night. Here’s the good thing, it’s only one game in October. There are 77 more games left.
Here’s a good thing: Eugene Omoruyi scored six points in his NBA debut.
The Not so Great for the Mavericks:
-Dallas leading-scorer Luka Doncic struggled with his shot(6/18 FG, 1/4 3pt), but he did lead the team with 16 points. However, he was not very good. Doncic’s shot has been off this season. He’s 9/35 from downtown in five games.
-The team’s second-leading scorer Tim Hardaway Jr. also could not throw a rock in the ocean; he was 1-7 from the field with three points.
Dorian Finney-Smith could not make a shot as well. He was 0/7 from the field with two points.
-Shooting: Dallas shot 29.5 percent from the field. You shoot like that; you should expect to lose.
First-quarter woes: For the fifth straight game, Dallas trailed after the first quarter. Thursday night, they overcame it against the Spurs, but on Friday, against a much better Nuggets’ team, Dallas could not bounce back from their slow start.
Bottom Line:
Jason Kidd said it nicely:
“When you have games like this, no matter how you look at it, it’s just bad,” Kidd said.
Dallas has to throw this one away and move forward.
What’s Next:
Dallas returns home on Sunday to face the Kings.
Best of the Rest:
Will Barton led the Nuggets with 17 points; Nikola Jokic had 11 points, 16 rebounds, and eight assists.
