3 Things We Learned From Mavericks-Suns Game 2 On Wednesday
Through the first three quarters against the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night in Game 2, the Dallas Mavericks held their own and they had a chance to possibly steal a game on the road in this series.
The fourth quarter though was controlled solely by Phoenix and the Suns really made their mark in the entire second-half of this game to pull away with a 20-point victory.
Devin Booker and Chris Paul were fantastic in Game 2, scoring a combined 58 points on 22-35 (62.9%) shooting, but the Suns as a whole really came alive, outscoring Dallas 71-49 in the second-half.
Between their ability to defend at a high-level and go on massive scoring runs, the Phoenix Suns have made it clear that they are the team to beat in the NBA and we kind of knew this already coming into the NBA Playoffs, as the Suns owned the league’s best record at 64-18 during the regular season.
As for the Mavericks, Luka Doncic went for 35 points, another big scoring night for him, but yet again, the rest of this team really did not come to play.
Reggie Bullock (16) and Spencer Dinwiddie (11) off-the-bench were the only other two Mavericks’ players to score at least 10 points and outside of Doncic, this team shot 39.6% from the floor, not counting the bench players that entered in “garbage time” at the end of the game when the Suns had basically already won.
Someone else is going to have to step up for the Mavericks in this series if they are to have a chance at beating the Suns and so far, Phoenix is well on their way to make it back-to-back years in the Western Conference Finals.
Is there anything Dallas can do to avoid falling into a 3-0 hole in this series? Here are the biggest takeaways from Phoenix’s Game 2 victory.
Iso-Ball Does Not Work Against Phoenix
Luka Doncic is one of the best isolation scorers in the league and he has been masterful through two games in this series, scoring a combined 80 points and shooting 53.8% from the floor.
However, Dallas as a whole has really struggled and this iso-ball philosophy for their offense is not working against one of the better defensive teams in the league.
Doncic could probably go for 50-60 points in Game 3 and this team would still lose if they do not get others involved simply because the Suns have too many weapons and too much depth.
Against the Utah Jazz, Doncic found a ton of success playing one-on-one, but against the Suns, this type of offensive set has not worked for the greater good of the team due to Jalen Brunson and Spencer Dinwiddie getting lost in the mix.
It is very clear that even though Doncic is a fantastic player, and do not get me wrong, he’s been incredible, he alone cannot carry the Mavs past the Suns in this series.
Whether it is Dinwiddie, Brunson, Bullock… Someone else is going to have to step up and be a consistent threat to score in this series, otherwise, Dallas is going to get swept by Phoenix.
The Suns Are The Best Offensive Team In The League At Full-Strength
Devin Booker and Chris Paul proved what they are capable of doing as a backcourt duo in Game 2, Deandre Ayton has been a force underneath in the paint all playoffs long, Mikal Bridges has proven to be a scoring threat at times and the Suns’ overall depth runs far deeper than just four players.
Phoenix’s front-office has done an incredible job of assembling not only scoring weapons, but putting together a well-balanced team that has players on the bench that can play numerous different roles.
Even players like Torrey Craig and Bismack Biyombo near the end of the bench are experienced enough to be able to check into any game and play their part.
Offensively, the Suns have some many weapons that they can put the ball in the hands of and not be worried about what may happen. Their bench scoring is near the top of the league and when Devin Booker is healthy, they are borderline unstoppable.
During the regular season, Dallas finished ranked second in points allowed per game (104.7). So far in this series, the Suns are averaging 125.0 points per game.
It is really hard to overlook the fact that Phoenix’s offense is playing at an elite-level right now and there really is nothing the Mavericks can do to stop them in this series unless they have an off-night shooting the basketball.
In Game 2, the Suns shot 64.5% from the floor and 52.0% from three-point range as a team.
They are the league’s best offense right now and showing no signs of slowing down, the Phoenix Suns have seemed to correct their mistakes from their opening series against the New Orleans Pelicans.
Dallas Has No Depth
Perhaps the biggest problem with the Dallas Mavericks, as briefly mentioned before, is their lack of overall depth.
This team really does not have a clear-cut No. 2 scoring option next to Luka Doncic and the Phoenix Suns are exposing this right now in the Western Conference Semifinals.
Jalen Brunson stepped up in Dallas’ first-round series, but Spencer Dinwiddie has been held in check as a scoring option off-the-bench and the Mavericks’ frontcourt is a complete mess.
Maybe trading away Kristaps Porzingis will turn out to be a poor move after all, especially given that the Mavericks are getting outrebounded and outplayed in the paint.
Having no cap space moving forward and really no reliable options on their bench to turn to, the Dallas Mavericks seem to be in a bit of trouble right now.
Luka Doncic cannot do everything on his own and without depth around him, the Mavericks are nothing more than what they currently are showing in this series. It is hard to envision them standing a chance against the Phoenix Suns the rest of the way, especially given that the Suns have taken away Brunson as an option on offense.
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