NOV 2 RECAP OF TUESDAY NIGHT’S NBA SLATE
Dalton Trigg recaps the NBA’s Tuesday night slate, which includes the continued struggles of the Brooklyn Nets and Golden State Warriors.
Fresh off of parting ways with coach Steve Nash, the Nets fell apart in the fourth quarter of their game against the Chicago Bulls as Zach LaVine dominated. The defending-champion Warriors fell to 3-5 on the season and 0-4 on the road in a loss to the Miami Heat.
Those two games and all of the rest are covered right here:
Stay tuned to DallasBasketball.com all day Wednesday for gameday coverage as the Dallas Mavericks prepare to take on the Utah Jazz.
NOV 1 NBA ROUNDUP; LOOK AHEAD TO MAVS-JAZZ
Dalton Trigg breaks down all the action that took place in the NBA last night on the Mavs Step Back Podcast. Topics include the surging Utah Jazz blew out the Memphis Grizzlies, Trae Young had a game to forget in the Atlanta Hawks’ blowout loss to the Toronto Raptors, Giannis Antetokounmpo helped the Milwaukee Bucks outlast the young Detroit Pistons to remain unbeaten, and much, much more!
Listen to the entire Monday night slate roundup, plus a look ahead to the Dallas Mavericks’ game against the Jazz on Wednesday, right here:
OCT 29 MCGEE COULD GET THE NIGHT OFF; POWELL STARTING OVER WOOD?
According to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, the Dallas Mavericks are considering giving the starting center the night off against the Oklahoma City Thunder since it’s the first night of a back-to-back. If that’s the case, one would assume that Christian Wood, who has been stellar for Dallas so far this season, would get the call to start on Saturday night, but it looks like that might not be the case.
“(The) Mavericks are considering starting Dwight Powell at center vs. OKC tonight and giving JaVale McGee a night of rest, sources said. The plan at this point is for Christian Wood to remain in the sixth man role where he has thrived,” MacMahon tweeted.
Through four games, Wood is averaging 21 points and eight rebounds in under 26 minutes per game. Even if the Mavs want to keep him in his bench role to better balance out scoring across the board, coach Jason Kidd should consider increasing Wood’s minutes into the 30-minute range. That’s only a four-minute difference, but it could’ve been the difference in the Mavs’ two-point losses to the Phoenix Suns and New Orleans Pelicans.
OCT 28 MAVS WILL HONOR LONGTIME FORMER EXECUTIVE KEITH GRANT
When the Dallas Mavericks take on the Orlando Magic on Sunday at the American Airlines Center, former executive Keith Grant will be honored.
“Keith Grant is an original Dallas Maverick and has been the backbone and heart of our organization for 42 years,” said Mavs owner Mark Cuban. “He is an absolute legend and we are excited to honor him on Sunday.”
Grant spent 42 years with the Mavs in several roles. He started out in the scouting department in the 80s and early 90s, then in 1996, he became the vice president of basketball operations. Grant was also the assistant general manager from 1998 until he recently retired.
OCT 27 DSJ WAS LEANING TOWARD NFL?
As the Dallas Mavericks struggle to find an adequate third ballhandler, Dennis Smith Jr. — who would have immediately signed with the Mavs in the offseason if he’d been offered a contract — is thriving with the Charlotte Hornets so far this season. Through four games, Smith is averaging 13.5 points, 6.3 assists and 2.3 steals while shooting 52 percent from the field and 50 percent from deep.
If Smith had not received another NBA opportunity over the offseason, his next stop would have been trying out for the NFL.
“I told my previous agent, ‘I’m not going overseas,'” said Smith. “If shit doesn’t work out, I’m just going to the NFL. I was dead-ass serious. I put on a lot of weight. I was going to try.
“People were just trying to write me off. I know I’m young. I’ve got time. I’m confident in myself.”
Despite our best efforts to open the Mavs’ eyes to the potential success of a DSJ-to-Dallas reunion, they chose to pass. Nothing against Facu Campazzo, but adding a taller, more athletic, two-way point guard who is only 24 years old, is friends with Luka Doncic, and is on-the-record less than two months ago saying he preferred coming back to the Mavs … would’ve likely been the better move.
Alas, things happened the way they did, and we’re happy to see Smith thriving in his home state.
OCT 24 PELS BANGED UP VS. MAVS
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The Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans played on Tuesday night in what was supposed to be a potentially high-powered instant classic. Although that could still be the case, the matchup is losing some of its juice due to injuries.
On Monday, the Pelicans announced that star forward Brandon Ingram has entered the NBA’s concussion protocol and won’t play against the Mavs. Ingram suffered his injury in a home loss to the Utah Jazz on Sunday night.
Zion Williamson and Herb Jones were also hobbled in the game against the Jazz. Williamson (hip/back contusion) and Jones (hyperextended knee) are both listed as questionable for the game against Dallas.
We’ll see how it all plays out, but right now, it’s looking like our chances of seeing Luka Doncic vs. Zion for the third time ever is in jeopardy.
OCT 23 ‘DAME TIME’ STRIKES IN LOS ANGELES
For anyone thinking Damian Lillard was going to take a step back in relevance this season … think again.
On Sunday, the Portland Trail Blazers went into Los Angeles and defeated LeBron James’ Lakers 106-104 after Lillard hit a clutch, go-ahead shot with just 13 seconds left. Lillard finished with 41 points on the night.
The Blazers are one of the NBA’s biggest surprises so far, as they’ve started the year 3-0. The Lakers, on the other hand, are even more disappointing than anyone could have predicted after an 0-3 start – and many already predicted them to be bad.
Is James regretting his decision to sign a contract extension before the season began? Will things get bad enough in Laker Land to force GM Rob Pelinka to make major moves before his self-mandated 20-game waiting period? As the Lakers keep losing, the pressure keeps mounting.
OCT 23 MAGIC IN VEGAS? Lakers legend Magic Johnson is reportedly looking to buy a stake in an NFL team.
According to Semafor’s Liz HoffmanMagic is engaged in serious talks to buy into the Las Vegas Raiders, with a suggestion in the report that “it could be the most expensive sports deal on record.”
Magic is currently a part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and the WNBA’s LA Sparks. His involvement with the Davis family in Vegas would create a flood of interest, as would another Lakers’ plan, as LeBron James is openly campaigning to be involved in ownership of a future NBA team in “Sin City.”
OCT 21 TONY BROWN PASSES
Longtime NBA referee Tony Brown has died after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Brown, who worked 20 seasons as an NBA official, was 55.
“Tony Brown was one of the most accomplished referees in the NBA and an inspiration to his colleagues,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “After his pancreatic cancer diagnosis early last year, Tony fought courageously through countless rounds of treatment to return to work this past season at the NBA Replay Center, demonstrating the dedication, determination and passion that made him such a highly respected official for 20 years. The entire NBA family mourns Tony’s passing and we send our deepest condolences to his wife, Tina; their children, Bailey, Basile and Baylen; and his fellow referees.”
OCT 20 MAVS-SUNS POPULAR ON ESPN
As if there were any doubts about the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns being big-time rivals again after their seven-game playoff series five months ago, the viewership numbers for last night’s season opener pretty much confined it.
According to ESPN, the Mavs-Suns late-night matchup was the most-watched season-opening late game on the network in five years with over 1.6 million people tuning in to see Luka Doncic vs. Devin Booker.
If this trend continues, “The Luka Special” might take on yet another meaning in the TV world.
OCT 19 LAKERS ‘STILL BAD’ Here at DallasBasketball.com we have a long and glorious history of “Loving to Hate” the Los Angeles Lakers. So it is with unbridled glee that when we watch the Lakers’ season-opener on the road playing the defending champion Warriors. … and we see the 123-109 loss in which LA seemed completely disjointed …
Yes. We love it.
The Lakers looked like the Lakers. Meaning last year’s non-playoff-entry Lakers meaning “bad.”
LeBron James got his 31 and Anthony Davis got his 27 and TNT’s Charles Barkley ripped both of them for “just getting numbers.”
Said LeBron of his 0-1 team: “If you’re being completely honest, we’re not a team constructed of great shooting. It’s not like, you know, we’re sitting here with a lot of lasers on our team.”
Oh. That’s a shame.
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