The Spurs will look to keep their winning streak alive as they visit the Mavericks. The two teams faced each other once already in this young season, but Dallas was without its two best players and simply couldn’t keep up in the fourth quarter against a more talented opponent. Things could be different this time around.
Cooper Flagg has looked like a superstar in his second season, averaging 25-6-6 and showing the type of maturity that is not common in players his age. He’s coming off a poor performance
in a loss against the Kings, but his ceiling seems unlimited, and his production makes him a problem on a nightly basis. Kyrie Irving missed the game against Sacramento, as he’s sitting out occasionally while he recovers from knee surgery, but the veteran point guard is averaging 21 points and five assists, and seems like the perfect partner for the developing Flagg. Both should be available on Tuesday, so it should be a competitive matchup.
While the Mavs have been solid this season, currently boasting a winning record, the Spurs are the hottest team in the league right now. After dropping their first two games, they have prevailed in their next five despite still trying to figure out their rotations, in part thanks to a fantastic stretch by Victor Wembanyama. They clearly have the talent to contend and should be considered the favorite over Dallas, but Flagg could present problems for a San Antonio team that starts a really small unit. On the other hand, the three-guard lineup could give the Mavericks fits on the perimeter while Wemby, looking for a bounceback performance after looking mortal against Utah, controls the paint en route to another victory.
San Antonio Spurs (5-2) vs. Dallas Mavericks(4-3)
November 4th, 2026 | 8:30 PM CT
Watch: ESPN | Listen: WOAI (1200 AM)
Spurs Injuries: Tobias Harris – Out (calf), Jayden Quaintance – Out (knee).
Mavericks Injuries: Santi Aldama — Questionable (Knee), Tarik Biberović — Out (Heel), Max Christie — Out (Hip), Sergio de Larrea — Out (Knee), Dereck Lively II — Out (Foot).
What to watch for
The battle of the young superstars
Flagg is just in his second season, but judging by his recent performances, he seems on his way to superstardom sooner rather than later. The 19-year-old forward can do it all already, except consistently shoot from outside, and should only continue to get better. He has as good a case as anyone to be considered Wemby’s biggest challenger for best player in the world in the near future, so it will be interesting to see what he can do against the most dominant defensive force in the league.
As mentioned, the Spurs don’t have someone who can match up well with Flagg, at least physically, in their starting lineup, but Stephon Castle has shown he can bother bigger guys, and the big guy will be behind him to back him up.
San Antonio can win without Wembanyama playing at his highest level, but everything is easier when their best player dominates. He could do that against the Daniel Gafford – Morez Johnson Jr. duo, and he could definitely take advantage of Dusty May going small, like he did a couple of times, to terrible results, in their first matchup.
Wemby won’t likely be guarded by Flagg for long, if at all, and vice versa, but whoever outplays the other could determine who emerges as the winner on Tuesday.
Elite transition offense vs. elite transition defense
While the halfcourt battle will be interesting to watch, whichever team can control the transition game will have a huge advantage. The Spurs play at an average pace, but they lead the league in fastbreak points. Whenever San Antonio gets to run, the offense gets supercharged, and even lineups lacking shooting become viable.
It might be hard to get a huge advantage on the break, however, since the Mavericks allow the fourth-fewest fastbreak points in the league despite turning the ball over at a high rate. Dallas also prefers to play at a leisurely pace, so making sure they are forcing San Antonio into a halfcourt battle will likely be a priority for them.
In the first matchup between the two teams, the Mavs actually outscored the Spurs in transition, but it seemed like it was in part because, missing both Flagg and Irving, they just took every opportunity they could to run, as it was the only way they could score consistently. The Silver and Black also seemed to play down to their opponent at times, with some bad transition defense showing their lack of focus. That shouldn’t happen again, or it could cost San Antonio a win.
Who will be the X-Factor for the Mavs?
The Spurs are more talented than the Mavericks overall, but they have at times found themselves lacking a spark outside of their main guys. The Mavericks, meanwhile, recently had great performances off the bench by Walter Clayton Jr., who dropped 20 on the Kings, and Morez Johnson Jr., who had 13 on just five shots against Sacramento. They have also had good showings from former No.1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher and Naji Marshall this season.
One of those players will likely have to take Max Christie’s starting spot, but they still have a bunch of guys who might not be dependable every night but can make an impact on any given game, as the Spurs learned while they were getting torched by the now-injured Sergio de Larrea in their first game against the Mavs.
The goal, clearly, will be to limit Irving and Flagg, but San Antonio will also have to keep an eye on the supporting cast to prevent someone from becoming an unlikely hero.
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