One thought after Dallas falls on the road, 119-113

Feb 5, 2023 - 4:31 AM

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The Dallas Mavericks fell on the road Saturday night to the Golden State Warriors, 119-113. Steph Curry, who left the game early with an injury, led the Warriors with 21 in an effort that saw seven players score double figures. Spencer Dinwiddie scored 25 to lead the Mavericks.

The Mavericks opened against the Warriors giving up 11 points in a mere 155 seconds. Dallas steadied themselves, climbing back into the game slowly and pulling within three, 24-21 at the 3:34 mark. Golden state responded with a 16-2 run to end the frame and Dallas found themselves reeling end the quarter, 40-23.

A concerted offense effort from the Mavericks in the second quarter could’ve helped even the score if Dallas were able to defend. Dorian Finney-Smith, Tim Hardaway, and Spencer Dinwiddie were certainly able to find the bottom of the basket, as the scored 35 points. Unfortunately, despite closing the lead down to as few as 11 with two minutes, the Warriors put the gas on late and carried a 73-58 lead into the half.

The third quarter gave the viewer all the feelings of a game where both teams were ready to get to the finish line healthy. The Warriors grew the lead from 15 to north of 20 points during the frame and it seemed the game was out of reach. Only Steph Curry was injured at some point on a drive late in the third, and despite the Warriors ending the frame 102-86, there was a chance for the Mavericks to make this a game.

The Mavericks spent the final frame working hard to make this near blow out a game, slowly working the lead down, only to see the Warriors blow the lead right back up. Despite Golden State leading by 18 points with 5:30 left, Dallas still had plenty of pride left. Constant Warriors turnovers made it a game; over the next three minutes the Mavericks went on a 13-0 run to close the lead to five with just under 90 seconds left. But a crushing Kevon Looney offensive rebound and a late Dallas turnover was just enough for the Warriors to hang on and for Dallas to fall, 119-113.

Now, one extra thought

Dallas didn’t have the horses

This one felt written in the stars for me. Luka Doncic, out with an injury. Christian Wood, out with an injury. Davis Bertans, out with an injury. When your best players are out, expecting everyone else to pick up the pieces on the road against a team that had 19 win tries at home seems unfair. And what happened for the Mavericks is more than what I expected. Dallas got their butts kicked early and they had every reason to pack it in. Josh Green had a dreadful time for most of his minutes on the floor (-28 in 27 minutes) and yet he really battled his ass off. Dorian Finney Smith played an OUTSTANDING game. Even Tim Hardaway came through a time or two. Spencer Dinwiddie did his absolute best!

It wasn’t enough. And that’s disappointing and not shocking. It’s the nature of this team. They don’t have the horses. We’ve known that the whole season. Alas.

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