The Dallas Mavericks rocked the NBA world by trading star guard Luka Doncic over the weekend, and the initial reaction and results have not been positive.
The Mavericks hope to silence the doubters Tuesday when they continue their five-game road trip with a matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Not only were the Mavericks widely criticized for the deal that sent Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for star center Anthony Davis — with several other pieces involved on both sides — but their first game since the trade was an ugly 144-101 shellacking at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The short-handed Mavericks gave up 50 first-quarter points and 91 in the first half and allowed Cleveland to make a franchise-record 26 3-pointers. Davis did not play, as he continues to recover from an abdominal injury. He is listed as questionable per trade pending.
Prior to the game, Dallas coach Jason Kidd said: “It is a little shocking, but … we have to push forward as an organization, as a team. We have a game to play and we have to be pros about it.”
Later Sunday, the Mavericks were routed by the Cavaliers, who employ two talented big men in Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. They combined for 36 points on 14-of-20 shooting and 20 rebounds against Dallas.
“The best thing about AD — look at tonight, how they (the Cavs) play two bigs,” said Dante Exum, who had 14 points for the Mavericks. “It’s a perfect example of how we can be — a defensive-minded team. And AD brings a lot of offense, a lot of rim protection, rebounding, everything. It’s going to be fun to jell and figure out how we’re going to be successful.”
Dallas must rebound from that defeat (and the overall shock of the trade) in time to take on Philadelphia and Boston at the end of its road trip. The Sixers and Celtics just played each other Sunday — a game in which Philadelphia led by 26 late in the third quarter before collapsing down the stretch.
“We just couldn’t quite get a stop from, I think, midway through the third until the end of the game,” Sixers coach Nick Nurse said after the 118-110 defeat. “We couldn’t quite come up with any consecutive stops or things like that.”
Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 34 points while Guerschon Yabusele chipped in 21. Ricky Council IV contributed 11 points, eight assists and seven boards as the team dropped its second straight following a four-game winning streak.
“Tonight was unacceptable,” Council said. “I guess 26 was the highest (lead). That’s unacceptable. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing. We’re fighting, but we’re tired of fighting. We need to turn that fighting into a win.”
The Sixers continued to play without Joel Embiid (knee) and Paul George (finger), although they both practiced Monday and could be returning to the court this week. George was ruled out for Tuesday’s game while Embiid is questionable.
That could mean bad news for the short-handed Mavericks, who have lost 13 of their last 19 games and open the week tied for ninth in the Western Conference standings.
Dallas concludes its road trip Thursday in Boston.
–Field Level Media
