On Tuesday, the NBA and the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) announced that The NBA Abu Dhabi Games 2023 will feature the Dallas Mavericks and the Minnesota Timberwolves playing two preseason games on Thursday, Oct. 5 and Saturday, Oct. 7 at Etihad Arena on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.
The NBA Abu Dhabi Games 2023 are part of a multiyear collaboration between the NBA and DCT Abu Dhabi that last year saw the Atlanta Hawks and the Milwaukee Bucks play the league’s first games in the Arabian Gulf.
In January, the NBA and DCT Abu Dhabi launched an expanded second season of the Jr. NBA Abu Dhabi League, featuring boys’ and girls’ leagues each composed of 450 players ages 11-14 from schools across the UAE capital. The collaboration also includes a variety of interactive fan events featuring appearances by current and former NBA players, a series of NBA FIT clinics promoting health and wellness, and an NBA 2K League exhibition event.
The Mavericks currently feature four-time NBA All-Star and three-time All-NBA First Team member Luka Dončić as well as 2016 NBA champion and eight-time NBA All-Star Kyrie Irving. The Timberwolves currently feature three-time NBA All-Star and two-time All-NBA Third Team member Karl-Anthony Towns, three-time NBA All-Star and Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert, and 2023 NBA All-Star Anthony Edwards.
On Monday, six ties among teams with identical regular-season records were broken through random drawings to determine the order of selection for NBA Draft 2023.
The results of the drawings:
-
The Houston Rockets (22-60) won a tiebreaker with the San Antonio Spurs.
-
The Indiana Pacers (35-47) won a tiebreaker with the Washington Wizards.
-
The Chicago Bulls (40-42) won a tiebreaker with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
-
The Miami Heat (44-38) won a tiebreaker with the Golden State Warriors and the LA Clippers. Second and third place in the tiebreaker drawings went to Golden State and the LA Clippers, respectively.
-
The Phoenix Suns (45-37) won a tiebreaker with the Brooklyn Nets.
-
The Memphis Grizzlies (51-31) won a tiebreaker with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
NBA Draft Lottery 2023 will be held on Tuesday, May 16(ESPN at 8:30 p.m. ET.)
Below is the order of selection for NBA Draft 2023(Thursday, June 22), and the probability of being awarded the first overall draft pick for teams in NBA Draft Lottery 2023 presented by State Farm.
Drawings will be conducted at NBA Draft Lottery 2023 to determine the first four picks in NBA Draft 2023 presented. The remainder of the Lottery teams will select in positions 5 through 14 in inverse order of their records in 2022-23 regular-season games. The teams entered in the NBA Draft Lottery and their probability of winning the Lottery are as follows:
TEAM
|
RECORD
|
WIN%
|
LOTTERY PROBABILITY
|
Detroit
|
17-65
|
.207
|
14.0%
|
Houston
|
22-60
|
.268
|
14.0%
|
San Antonio
|
22-60
|
.268
|
14.0%
|
Charlotte
|
27-55
|
.329
|
12.5%
|
Portland
|
33-49
|
.402
|
10.5%
|
Orlando
|
34-48
|
.415
|
9.0%
|
Indiana
|
35-47
|
.427
|
6.8%
|
Washington
|
35-47
|
.427
|
6.7%
|
Utah
|
37-45
|
.451
|
4.5%
|
Dallas1
|
38-44
|
.463
|
3.0%
|
Chicago2
|
40-42
|
.488
|
1.8%
|
Oklahoma City
|
40-42
|
.488
|
1.7%
|
Toronto
|
41-41
|
.500
|
1.0%
|
New Orleans
|
42-40
|
.512
|
0.5%
|
The order for the remainder of the first round picks is as follows:
|
TEAM
|
RECORD
|
WIN%
|
15.
|
Atlanta
|
41-41
|
.500
|
16.
|
Minnesota (to Utah)
|
42-40
|
.512
|
17.
|
Los Angeles Lakers
|
43-39
|
.524
|
18.
|
Miami
|
44-38
|
.537
|
19.
|
Golden State
|
44-38
|
.537
|
20.
|
LA Clippers (to Houston)
|
44-38
|
.537
|
21.
|
Phoenix (to Brooklyn)
|
45-37
|
.549
|
22.
|
Brooklyn
|
45-37
|
.549
|
23.
|
New York (to Portland)
|
47-35
|
.573
|
24.
|
Sacramento
|
48-34
|
.585
|
25.
|
Memphis
|
51-31
|
.622
|
26.
|
Cleveland (to Indiana)
|
51-31
|
.622
|
27.
|
Denver (to Charlotte via New York and Oklahoma City)
|
53-29
|
.646
|
28.
|
Philadelphia (to Utah via Brooklyn)
|
54-28
|
.659
|
29.
|
Boston (to Indiana)
|
57-25
|
.695
|
30.
|
Milwaukee (to the LA Clippers via Houston)
|
58-24
|
.707
|
1 This pick may be conveyed to New York
2 This pick may be conveyed to Orlando
When the Dallas Mavericks sat many of its top players for the final two games of the regular season, including Kyrie Irving for both games and Luka Doncic(who played one quarter against the Bulls), many accused the Mavericks of tanking, and the league agreed.
On Friday, the NBA announced that the Mavericks organization has been fined $750,000 for conduct detrimental to the league in an elimination game against the Chicago Bulls on April 7.
According to the league, the Mavericks violated the league’s player resting policy and demonstrated through actions and public statements the organization’s desire to lose the game in order to improve the chances of keeping its first-round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. The league did not find that the players who participated in the game were not playing to win.
“The Dallas Mavericks’ decision to restrict key players from fully participating in an elimination game last Friday against Chicago undermined the integrity of our sport,” said Joe Dumars, NBA Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations, in a press release. “The Mavericks’ actions failed our fans and our league.”
Dallas, who missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2018-19 season, is looking to keep their pick, which is a top-10 protected pick. If the pick lands after 10, it goes to the Knicks(Porzingis trade), so if all goes well, Dallas will at least keep the 10th pick, which could allow the Mavericks to add talent around Doncic and, if he stays, Irving.
The Dallas Mavericks(38-43) were officially eliminated from playoff contention after losing to the visiting Chicago Bulls 115-112 on Friday night.
Dallas will miss the playoffs for the first time since the 2018-19 season.
Entering this game, Dallas was a 1/2 game behind the Thunder for the 10th and final spot in the Play-In Tournament, but now it’s over, and the Mavs are okay with it.
Dallas sat Kyrie Irving(foot), Christian Wood(rest), Maxi Kleber(hamstring), Josh Green(rest), and Tim Hardaway Jr.(ankle). Luka Doncic played little over one quarter on “I Feel Slovenia” night, scoring 13 points, so it was clear what the Mavs’ plans were for this game and the season-finale; this team waived the white flag of surrender and was looking to tank.
“Understanding it’s not so much waving the white flag,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said after the loss. “Decisions sometimes are hard in this business, and you have to make hard decisions, and we’re trying to build a championship team, and sometimes you got to take a step back. Understanding, again, with this decision, maybe a step back, but hopefully, it leads to us going forward.
“Again, it’s not always easy to make decisions, but these are decisions that are made from my bosses, and we got to follow them. We trust Cuban and Nico to put the pieces together to put us in a position to win a championship, and so that’s just starting the process today.”
At this point, the Mavs focus on next season. Dallas is currently slotted for the 10th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. The draft lottery could change that, but it’s a good chance they stay at 10. If they remain at 10, their pick, which is top-10 protected, would not go to the Knick(Kristaps Porzingis trade), which gives the team more assets to go after more talent. In addition, it appears the team wants to re-sign Irving and build around Doncic and Irving going forward.
Back to this season, what a disappointment. When the Mavs acquired Irving in February, many felt this team could make noise in a wide-open Western Conference. At the time, the Mavs were 29-26 and the fifth seed in the West. Unfortunately, things never came together, and Dallas is 9-17 after the trade.
Regarding the tank, again, the West is wide open, and anything could have happened once they got into the Play-In Tournament, but again, the white flag was raised, and now it’s on to the NBA Draft Lottery, NBA Draft, free agency, and more.
On Sunday night, the Dallas Mavericks lost another game after falling to the Atlanta Hawks on the road 132-130 in OT. With the loss, the Mavericks remain the 11th seed in the Western Conference and are one game behind the 10th-seeded Oklahoma Thunder, who also lost on Sunday night.
OKC(38-41) holds the tiebreaker over Dallas, so they basically have a two-game lead over the Mavs for the 10th seed, the final spot in the Play-In Tournament.
However, OKC’s final three games are against the @Warriors, @Jazz, and Grizzlies at home, while the Mavs’ (37-42) last three games. all at home, are against the Kings, Bulls, and Spurs. The schedule favors Dallas, but it might not matter based on how they’re playing.
Dallas, who allowed an average of 130.5 points per contest in the last two, has lost three straight and seven of their last eight.
Based on a report, the schedule and how Dallas is playing may not even matter.
According to Shams Charania, there are reports that the Mavs could shut down Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving for the final three games of the season, which means the Mavs have closed the door on the 2022-23 season and set their sights on next season.
If the Mavs lose out, more than likely, they will keep the pick that they owe to the Knicks, which is a top-10 protected pick(2023). If the pick lands after 10, it goes to New York. According to Charania, getting a top-10 pick in the draft will give Dallas more assets to go after talent that could help Doncic and Irving.
The trade for Irving has been bad at this point, but it’s not Irving’s fault. Injuries have plagued this team since the trade, and Doncic and Irving have missed multiple games, and still battling injuries right now.
No one expected the Mavs, who made it to the Western Conference Finals last season, to be in this position when they traded for Irving, but they are; we’ll see what their next steps will be this season.
The Dallas Mavericks hoped to gain ground in the standings on Friday night as they hosted the lowly and shorthanded Charlotte Hornets.
However, Charlotte(24-51), without Kelly Oubre Jr. and Terry Rozier, led by as many as 21 points and held on late to defeat the Mavs 117-109.
With the loss, Dallas(36-38), who now have lost three straight, including two straight at home, is now the 11th seed in the Western Conference, so if the playoffs started today, they would not make the playoffs nor the Play-In Tournament.
The Mavs never led after the first quarter and allowed the Hornets to score 37-first quarter points, which did not please their head coach Jason Kidd.
“It was awful. Dogs***,” he said. “I think just understanding the talk before the game of what we’re playing for – playoffs or championship – and to come out in that first half, but more-or-less that first quarter, and give up 37 [points]. The interest level just wasn’t high. It was just… disappointing.”
Luka Doncic, who led the Mavericks with 34 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists, had interesting comments after the loss. According to Doncic, he’s not playing with happiness.
“I mean, yes. It’s really frustrating,” he said. “I think you can see it with me on the court. Sometimes, I don’t feel it’s me. I’m just being out there. I used to have fun smiling on the court, but it’s been so frustrating for a lot of reasons – not just basketball.”
Doncic referred to some things of a personal nature happening outside of the game, but he did not get specific.
The Mavs are about to embark on a five-game road trip, which starts Sunday in Charlotte against these same Hornets.
Kyrie Irving, who had 19 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists, says the team can’t make any excuses or point fingers.
“I have been in positions before in the season when we have been under .500 and scratching and clawing to get into the playoffs,” he said. “It’s not a position you want to be in, but it’s our reality, and we have to face it. There is no time for excuses or pointing fingers – just move on to the next game and do all that we can to prepare in the best way. We knew tonight was a very winnable game against the Hornets.”
Dallas, who have eight games left, is 9-15 against Eastern Conference teams, and their next five, all on the road, are against teams from the East, including the 76ers and Heat, so it will be challenging for the Mavs. Look, the Mavs could miss the Play-In Tournament and the playoffs; it’s a real possibility, especially considering how they played on the road(14-22) this season.
“I understand that we’ve got eight games left, so we’re still in control of this, but our effort has to be a little bit better from the start,” Kidd said.
Seeing how these final eight games play out for Dallas will be fascinating.
Notes:
-P.J. Washington led the Hornets with 28 points, tied for his second-best scoring output on the season.
-Dwight Powell (7-7 FG) and Christian Wood each added 14 points for the Mavericks.
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic has been fined $35,000 for directing an inappropriate and unprofessional gesture toward a game official, the league announced on Friday.
According to the league, the incident occurred with :01.7 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Mavericks’ 127-125 loss to the Golden State Warriors on March 22 at American Airlines Center.
In that game, Doncic, who returned after missing five games with a thigh injury, had 30 points, seven rebounds, and a season-best 17 assists against the Warriors, was seen making a money gesture toward a referee.
Dallas gets back at it on Friday night as they host the Charlotte Hornets.
The Dallas Mavericks got Luka Doncic back on Wednesday night in a pivotal game against the Golden State Warriors.
Unfortunately, Dallas did have his sidekick, Kyrie Irving(foot), and Tim Hardaway Jr.(illness).
Doncic, who missed five games with a thigh injury, did his part as he had 30 points, seven rebounds, and a season-best 17 assists, but it wasn’t enough as Golden State defeated the Mavericks 127-125 at American Airlines Center.
Steph Curry had 20 points and 13 assists, including the assist that set up Draymond Green’s three-point play that gave Golden State the lead for good at 123-120 with 1:32 left in the game.
With the loss, the ninth-seeded Mavs(36-37), who have lost two straight, are 1.5 games behind the sixth-seeded Warriors(38-36). In addition, the Warriors hold the tiebreaker after winning the season series 2-1.
After the game, most of the talk was about a play in the third quarter. The Warriors’ Kevan Looney got a rebound and was stripped by Dallas’ Jaden Hardy. The referee signaled Warriors’ ball and pointed to the Mavs sideline, indicating a timeout.
Following the timeout, confusion ensued as the Mavs thought it was their ball, so they went down to the other end of the court, but it was really Warriors’ ball, and Jordan Poole inbounded the ball to Looney, and he had an uncontested dunk.
Crew chief Sean Wright explained what happened.
“Initially on the floor, the original signal was, in fact, Golden State ball, as this can be seen on video,” he said. “There is a second signal, but that signal is for a mandatory timeout that was due to the Mavs.”
Official Mike Smith was at the end of the court with the Mavs players, which, according to Kidd, makes him believe that Smith also thought it was Dallas’ possession.
“We thought it was our ball,” Kidd said. “The referee pointed towards our bench, but that was a signal of the timeout. There was confusion on the play before it even started with whose ball it was. He pointed, I thought, to us first, and then he changed it. Then it went to a timeout and pointed to us. As I asked Mike, I said, ‘Mike, why are you there on the floor if it’s not our ball?’ There were quite a few people out of position on that play. It’s easy, it’s correctible, but you first have to admit there was a mistake. But there wasn’t; we have to continue to keep playing.”
“It was kind of weird,” Doncic added. “I was surprised. Honestly, I didn’t even know what was going on. I have never seen that ever in my life.”
Dallas is expected to protest this loss. However, it will probably be denied because most of them get rejected.
Common sense should have prevailed.
The officials should have stopped play, explained the situation, and gone forward. Instead, you get confusion, controversy, and a Mavs loss.
Notes:
-Jaden Hardy scored 27 points, helped by 6-9 shooting from 3-point range, to go with 5 rebounds tonight. Hardy hit a new career-best with 6 made 3-pointers and he has logged 20+ points in five of his last six games.
-Jonathan Kuminga finished the game shooting 9-11 from the field for 22 points.
For the time since December, the Dallas Mavericks(34-35) have fallen below .500 after losing to the Memphis Grizzlies 104-88 at home on Monday night.
Again, Dallas, who have lost three straight, was without their two best players, Luka Doncic(thigh) and Kyrie Irving(foot). Also, they were without Christian Wood(foot).
However, rookie Jaden Hardy scored 16 of his game-high 28 points in the first half, and the Mavs led 50-49 at halftime, but Memphis(41-26) outscored Dallas by 14 in the third and had their largest lead of 21 in the fourth.
With the loss, the Mavs dropped to the eighth seed in the West, and if the season ended today, they would have to win in the Play-In Tournament to make the playoffs.
According to their head coach Jason Kidd, Dallas has to get healthy in order to make a run in their final 13 games.
“Once the season is over,” Kidd said after the loss to Memphis. “It’s just the regular season. Well, that (the regular season could end, and the year is over)’s true, too. Then there has to be concern. Just understand, our health – this is what we have; these are the cards we’re dealt. Just like anybody in this league, we’ve got to play with the cards that we had tonight…
“Understand, we’re getting better – it’s just a matter of ‘can we be healthy in time to make a stretch run?’ If not, that’s just the season. No one is dying.”
While Dallas is the eighth seed right now, they are only two games behind the sixth and fifth-seeded teams, the Warriors and Clippers, and are 3.5 games behind the fourth-seeded Suns, so there’s still hope. However, Josh Green, who had 23 points, five rebounds, and seven assists on Monday, says Dallas has to start winning.
“We’ve got to win,” Green said. “It’s no other option now. We all need to have the mindset that we’re trying to win every single game from here on out. We’re playing against teams like the Lakers coming up and even the Spurs, where the young guys are trying to beat us. So, at the end of the day, whatever’s on all of our minds, it’s no more than that we need to win for the rest of the season and continue to win. Right now, the Western Conference is completely wide open, and we need to make sure that we’re winning games.”
Dallas gets back at it on Wednesday night in San Antonio against the Spurs.
On Thursday night, the Dallas Mavericks(33-32) got a combined 82 points(Doncic 42, Irving 40) from Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, and they defeated the visiting 76ers 133-126.
On Sunday against the visiting Suns(36-29), Doncic and Irving became the first pair of Mavericks teammates to each score 30-plus points in consecutive games. Doncic had 34 points, while Irving scored 30 points.
However, Kevin Durant and Devin Booker almost did to the Mavs what Doncic and Irving did to the 76ers. Booker had 36 points, and Durant had a game-high 37, including the game-winning jumper with 14.2 seconds to go as the Suns defeated Dallas 130-126 at American Airlines Center.
“I’ve been on the other side of it,” Booker said about Durant’s shot. “I know it’s a tough cover. It’s one of those situations where no matter what you do, he’s playing with just him and the hoop out there. His skill set for his size is second none. That was another example of that tonight.”
Durant added on the final shot: “Once I had him on my hip, I felt like I was in good position to just stop on a dime.”
Mavs coach Jason Kidd showed love to Durant.
“I thought that’s what KD [Kevin Durant] does,” Kidd said. “He went away from the double team, and when he rises, he’s longer than 7 feet, and he got to his spot.”
Dallas had a chance to tie, but Doncic’s short floater rimmed out.
“I just missed that one,” Doncic said. “I thought it was in, but I just missed it. One of my friends texted me saying, ‘I would have even made that.’”
After the miss, Doncic and Booker had a little altercation, and the two went face-to-face.
However, neither Doncic nor Booker would say what words were said to cause the confrontation.
“I don’t think you can say it on camera,” Doncic said. “He was talking to me. It’s not for TV. I would get fined… It’s just a competitive game; just next time, don’t wait till there are three seconds left to talk.”
Booker, who added five rebounds and a season-high 10 assists, says he has no issues with Doncic.
“I’m not here to tattle tale,” Booker said. “I was talking to the ref. He said something to me; first, I responded. You guys [the media] always say you don’t want everyone to be ‘friendly-friendly,’ so there you go, you got some smoke. It’s just two competitors going at it. Everybody speaks on how friendly the NBA is now, and they don’t like that. I have no problem with Luka [Dončić] on or off the court, but when we’re competing, we’re competing. You guys are just trying to stir the pot. I don’t have problems with nobody.”
There is a little rivalry between the Suns and Mavs after Dallas defeated Phoenix in 7 in the Western Conference semifinals last season, and Irving can feel it.
“You see it from afar. It’s definitely different, obviously, being out here,” Irving said. “The level of play rises. Emotions rise. I think we see everyone display that on their facial expressions or communicating with the refs, going back-and-forth. At the end of the day, No one is really going to fight out there. “
With the loss, the Mavs are the seventh seed in the West. Dallas is 2-3 on their current six-game homestand, and they conclude the homestand on Tuesday night against the Jazz.
Notes:
The Suns move to 3-0 with Durant in the lineup.
-Doncic added nine rebounds and four assists, and Irving added four rebounds and seven assists.
-Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 21 points on 6-8 shooting from 3-point range. Hardaway Jr. finished the first half with 18 points, helped by his 5-6 shooting clip from 3-point range. The first half was his highest-scoring first half of the season and tied his career-best for the most 3FG in the first half.
-Christian Wood came off the bench for 17 points on 5-7 shooting to go with three rebounds. Wood has scored 10+ points in nine straight games, averaging 15.3 points per game in that span.
