Game 12: Dallas (5-6) @ Utah (2-8), 11/14, 8:00 PM

[Reunion Mav]

Now Gafford. Lively in foul trouble. Times are frustrating and tough. Hang in there beloved Mavs.

[ThisIStheYear]

This is the most important game of the year so far. A losss tonight and they’re screwed. Thats why I’m sure they will pull this out. Just can’t afford to lose a must win against the league’s worst team.

[Chicagojk]

Just a disgraceful peformance

[dmavs4life03]

smh.... we have the potential but btwn the injuries and inconsistent effort..... well we suck.

[KillerLeft]

Luka’s defense has reached an all time low, which is really saying something.

[KillerLeft]

Something is very wrong. This is the kind of situation that gets coaches fired in the middle of the season.

[KillerLeft]

I meant the poll in the OP as a joke, but not with this type of punchline.

[Chicagojk]

Luka has been so bad despite scoring. Defense has been brutal all night. He isn’t in shape or healthy enough to run the Luka offense right now. He looks 40 years old out there.

[dmavs4life03]

no effort on the glass/boxing out and its back breaking when we get a miss but dont secure the board

[ThisIStheYear]

Yikes. What a low character, soft team. Most important game of the year and half the team is “hurt”. Once the losing takes hold, you never recover. The officials will keep you down. Time to tank if they lose this one. It’s a great draft.

[Chicagojk]

Not sure why we played Luka the whole quarter though. Short handed i get it.

Last year was long and great, so i have no problem taking the summer off, if he did. Conditioning needs to be a year round thing. No excuse. Especially with his body that can put on weight quickly. So frustrating.

[Mavs2021]

Sexton and Collins instead of Klay and Kleber would be really nice for this team.

[Reunion Mav]

What’s wrong is one to many gut punch losses and way to many guys on the bench hurt. We look so out of sink but this does happen to teams.

Right now our guys are fighting back a little better.

[ThisIStheYear]

WTF is Hardy falling down at that point in the shot clock. Dumb player.

[KillerLeft]

Every time Luka’s man scores, he looks around like it’s someone else’s fault. Literally every time. He’s probably right some of the time, but that doesn’t change how douche bag that move is.

[ThisIStheYear]

This game should put an end to all the “start Lively” chatter. He’s not ready. It’s more important to keep him out of foul trouble playing against second stringers until crunch time.

[Chicagojk]

This game should put an end to all the “start Lively” chatter. He’s not ready. It’s more important to keep him out of foul trouble playing against second stringers until crunch time.

He is fine.  Never got into a flow due to foul trouble.  Also second game back after injury.  He is our best center.  Hasn’t been good tonight though.

Centers getting now help.  Parade to the goal.  The defense stinks.

[KillerLeft]

This game should put an end to all the “start Lively” chatter. He’s not ready. It’s more important to keep him out of foul trouble playing against second stringers until crunch time.

I disagree. Foul trouble was definitely an issue for him in this one, but he hasn’t actually been particularly foul prone during his career, so far, and if he doesn’t learn how to start, then he isn’t the player everyone here “knows” him to be.

Besides, it is crystal clear that Gafford isn’t good enough to be on some sort of equal pedestal with him. This team should be about the business of developing the 30 to 35 minutes per night version of lively. There might be growing pains, sure, but that’s the goal.

[KillerLeft]

Ironically, Grimes and Marshall have been the best players on the team tonight. Not the guys who were in the finals last year, or the big, trumpeted free agency score, but they are playing hard.

[ThisIStheYear]

Here comes the tank portion of the game for Utah. They don’t even want to win this game.