Fresh off of a 119-113 loss in New Orleans to the Pelicans, the Dallas Mavericks (11-19) return home to face off against one of the best teams in the Western Conference, the Denver Nuggets (21-7). Both
Dallas and Denver, who defeated Utah 135-112 Monday night in Denver, will be playing on the second night of a back-to-back. This is also a national TV broadcast, meaning we likely won’t see many rest nights on either side.
What should you know before tipoff? Well, you’re in the right place to find out. Let’s get into the preview.
Back for more
The last time these two squads faced off, the Mavericks walked into Denver and came out with a shocking 131-121 road win. That night, the Mavs shot a whopping 52% from deep and were led by Ryan Nembhard, who had 28 points and ten assists on the night. Nembhard’s heater has cooled just a bit since he’s been in the lineup regularly these days. So, how will Denver counter? They will be without two of their better defenders again, in Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun. Even still, it would be fair to assume that the effort level will be much higher from the Nuggets this go around.
Joker’s wild
There isn’t much to be said about Nikola Jokic that hasn’t already been said, but my goodness the man just continues to be utterly dominant. Coming into Monday night, Jokic is averaging 29.4 points, 12.1 rebounds and 10.7 assists per game. To top it all off, he’s also shooting nearly 61% from the floor and 42% from three. If he keeps this up, it will be the best statistical season to date in his career. Argue with a wall, this is your MVP.
Roundball Rock
Tuesday’s game marks the first time the Dallas Mavericks have played a game on NBC since May 12, 2001. So, let’s take a trip down memory lane, shall we?
That Saturday afternoon, the Mavericks beat the San Antonio Spurs 112-108 in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals at Reunion Arena. Dirk Nowitzki was your leading scorer in that game, dropping 30 points. Michael Finley added 25 points and 10 assists while notably playing all 48 minutes. There were a combined 26 three pointers taken in the game. Tim Duncan and David Robinson combined to shoot 30 free throws in the game. The Mavericks, as a team, shot 19.
The Spurs played two future NBA Head Coaches in the game (Avery Johnson and Steve Kerr), while also playing four past or present broadcasters (Johnson, Kerr, Antonio Daniels and Sean Elliott). Not to be outdone, the Mavericks played two future NBA General Managers that day (Finley and Calvin Booth), along with four future coaches (Steve Nash, Juwan Howard, Greg Buckner and Eduardo Najera). Also on the Mavericks roster that day was a very washed Vernon Maxwell, who was a DNP-CD that day. Maxwell is now a podcaster and hater of the state of Utah with a burning passion.
How to watch
Tipoff is at 7:00p from the American Airlines Center in Dallas. NBC and Peacock will have the game.
