2021-2022 MAVS NEWS: 4th in West | WCF loss [ARCHIVED]

[ClutchDirk]

10

[color=rgba(2,104,214,var(--text-opacity))]Dallas Mavericks
Last Week: [color=rgba(2,104,214,var(--text-opacity))]15 ↑[/color][/color]

[b]Record:[/b] 22-18
[b]Pace:[/b] 96.0 (29) [b]OffRtg:[/b] 109.7 (16) [b]DefRtg:[/b] 107.1 (5) [b]NetRtg:[/b] +2.6 (10)
We’ve been waiting for the Mavs to find their offense, having been the best team in the league on that end of the floor (with largely the same personnel) two seasons ago. But while we’ve been waiting, they’ve swiftly climbed into the top five on the other end of the floor, allowing just [color=rgba(2,104,214,var(--text-opacity))]96.7 points per 100 possessions over a six-game winning streak. Holding the Warriors to just 82 points on 95 possessions and ending the Bulls’ own nine-game winning streak were the highlights, but the most important win (in which the Mavs earned the head-to-head tiebreaker) came against Denver on Monday. They were playing the second game of a back-to-back, and they rotated [color=rgba(2,104,214,var(--text-opacity))]competently[/color] and [color=rgba(2,104,214,var(--text-opacity))]cohesively[/color] out of double-teams on Nikola Jokic, forcing 26 turnovers out of the Nuggets.
Much of this six-game stretch of defense is about opponent 3-point shooting ([color=rgba(2,104,214,var(--text-opacity))]28.7%[/color]), so there’s reason to be skeptical. But the Mavs have also seen big improvements in opponent free throw rate and defensive rebounding percentage ([color=rgba(2,104,214,var(--text-opacity))]in which they rank first over the streak[/color]).
Dallas will face another streaking team (the Grizzlies) with a top-10 offense this week. No team has defended Memphis over multiple games [color=rgba(2,104,214,var(--text-opacity))]better than the Mavs[/color], who’ve allowed just 100.5 points per 100 possessions as the teams have split the first two meetings. They’ll have a rest advantage (the Grizzlies host the Wolves the night before) on Friday, but that game will be the start of a five-games-in-seven-nights stretch for the Mavs.[/color]