The 5 takeaways from the Mavs’ 100-99 loss to the Denver Nuggets
Mar 15, 2019Dwain Price
HEARTBREAKING DEFEAT: In the bushel of games the Mavs have lost this season, Thursday’s game ranked right up there with (the worst of) them. The Mavs went toe-to-toe with one the NBA’s best team and led by 12 with over 11 minutes to go, and by one point after Luka Doncic hammered home an aggressive dunk right on the noggin of Paul Millsap – and on the noggin of Mason Plumlee, too — with 5.8 seconds to go. But that was more than enough time for Nikola Jokic to drain a ridiculous nine-foot turnaround fadeaway jumper at the buzzer while he was totally blanketed by Dwight Powell.
MAVS SHOWED THEY CAN PLAY WITH ONE OF THE NBA’S BEST TEAM: The Mavs have lost seven consecutive games. But they showed Thursday night that they can play with Denver in Denver, who has the fourth-best record in the NBA and the league’s second-best home record. The Mavs outscored outscored the Nuggets, 12-6, in second-chance points. The Mavs also showed some progress they’ve made since the twin trades that relieved them of four of their starters some six weeks ago. The Nuggets are considered one of the NBA’s elite teams. And while the Mavs are tied with having the worst road record in the league, it took an improbable shot by Nikola Jokic at the buzzer to beat Dallas.
LUKA CONTINUES TO IMPRESS: Luka Doncic came very close to registering his fifth triple-double of the season. The rookie from Slovenia finished the game with 24 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. It’s the seventh time this season that Doncic has been either one or two assists or rebounds away from collecting a triple-double. Doncic was 10-of-23 from the field and only 1-of-8 from 3-point territory. But after posterizing Paul Millsap and Mason Plumlee on that vicious dunk with 5.8 seconds left, Doncic was upset that he failed to complete the three-play play when he was fouled by Millsap.
BRUNSON STILL HAS THE HOT HAND: Jalen Brunson continues to produce so fluidly that he’s playing like someone who’s been in the NBA for three for four years. The rookie from Villanova tallied 20 points, grabbed five rebounds and dispensed four assists against the Nuggets. He also was 8-of-15 from the field and 3-of-7 from 3-point land. It’s the fourth time in the last 11 games that Brunson has scored 20 or more points in a game as his role gets more and more defined. Whenever Luka Doncic goes to the bench, Brunson has looked very comfortable running the Mavs’ offense.
OH, WHAT A DAY, WHAT A DAY: Years from now the historians will remember that day a bomb cyclone prevented the Mavs from flying to Denver on Wednesday – their scheduled departure day. History will also remember that the tired-legged Mavs – they flew to Denver on Thursday morning and had to cancel their shootaround – caught lightning in a bottle and gave the Nuggets all they could handle. In addition, history will show that Dirk Nowitzki got a tech while he was standing on the baseline saying something a referee. Nowitzki said he’s going to try to get the T rescinded. History will also show that Denver needed a 21-8 finishing kick to beat by the Mavs by one point at the buzzer.
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