Kyrie Irving’s Big Night Not Enough as Spiraling Mavs Fall to Hawks in OT
The end is near for the Dallas Mavericks, but that might be a good thing based on their level of play since February.
With their postseason hopes already on life support, the Mavs dropped yet another important game on Sunday night to the Atlanta Hawks while being on the second night of a back-to-back, 132-130 in overtime.
Down by one with 0.4 seconds remaining in regulation, JaVale McGee went to the free-line with a chance to win the game but split the pair to send the game into overtime. With 1.8 left in overtime, Luka Doncic missed a game-winning 3-point attempt at the buzzer.
As has been the case for the last few months, and really the entire season, lack of defense was the biggest reason for the Mavs suffering their seventh loss in eight games. Less than 24 hours after giving up 76 points to the Miami Heat in the first half of Saturday’s game, the Mavs gave up 70 to the Hawks in the first half on Sunday.
Kyrie Irving led the way for Dallas, scoring 41 points and playing big minutes after doing the same in Miami the night before. Unfortunately for the Mavs, their star’s offensive brilliance wasn’t enough to offset their lackluster team defense. Irving shot 16-27 from the field, grabbed five rebounds and dished out four assists.
Doncic finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and seven assists while shooting 8-21 from the field and 3-12 from deep.
Turnovers and free-throw shooting played a big roles in Sunday’s loss, as Dallas coughed the ball up 14 times, which led to 23 points for Atlanta. Dallas also shot just 22-32 from the charity stripe. In a two-point loss, 10 misses on freebies hurts.
With the loss, the Mavs have secured their first losing season since Doncic’s rookie year in 2018-19. If there is a silver lining for the Mavs, it’s that they are in position to keep their 2023 first-round pick that would convey to the New York Knicks if it falls out of the top 10.
Next up, the Mavs fly back to Dallas to finish off their 2022-23 campaign with three consecutive home games, starting with the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.
Stay tuned for more postgame coverage at DallasBasketball.com in the coming days.
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