Clutch Free Throws Help Avoid Collapse: 3 Big Takeaways from Mavs' Win Over Nets
On Monday night, the Dallas Mavericks outlasted the Brooklyn Nets in another crunch-time nail-biter, 96-94.
In classic Mavericks fashion, they just couldn't let fans relax down the stretch of this one. Dallas held an 11-point lead with just over four minutes remaining before it took its foot off the gas, and the Nets charged their way back into the game, setting up another stressful finish.
Clutch free throws in the final seconds from Luka Doncic and Dorian Finney-Smith teamed with an uncharacteristic charity stripe miss from Nets' star Kevin Durant helped clinch the game for Dallas.
Here are three main takeaways from the Mavs' victory over the Nets.
Josh Green has arrived and is here to stay
It’s official, ladies and gents. After showing flashes to start the season with visible improvements on the offensive end, Josh Green has earned a consistent, important role for the Mavericks. Green finished Monday night’s win with a season-high 16 points, five rebounds, and two assists on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting from the field.
Green’s growing confidence on offense gives Jason Kidd another viable option off the bench — and a potential starter option — who can contribute on both ends of the floor. Green possesses endless energy and effort that spans from setting numerous screens to diving for loose balls and all of the above.
And coach Jason Kidd has seen the growth. Kidd said after practice on Nov. 2 that Green had 'earned more minutes.’ After all, Green is a team-best +80 when on the floor this season following Monday night's win.
"He’s playing great,” Kidd said of Green. “He deserves more minutes and we’ve got to figure out how to get him more minutes."
If Green continues this ascension, and it looks like he will, he’ll become a crucial mainstay in Kidd’s rotation.
The end of the JaVale McGee experience
We’re only nine games in, and we’ve seen enough. It’s time to pull the plug on not just JaVale McGee as a starter, but probably as a part of Kidd’s rotation all together. Forget the so-called promise that was made to him in the offseason — it should be over if the main objective for the Mavs is to win games.
McGee has been awful, and that’s probably putting it lightly. Through eight games, McGee is averaging 4.3 points and 2.6 rebounds in 9.5 minutes per game, his lowest averages since the 2017-18 season.
On Monday, McGee got the start once again after a one-game benching, but was subbed out for Christian Wood after just three minutes into the game and never took the floor again.
It’s evident that his impact doesn’t sniff what Wood, Maxi Kleber, and Dwight Powell bring to the floor in all their own ways. For Powell, who has seen his minutes increase over the last several games, is a +65 when he's on the floor this season, compared to McGee's -28.
Prior to Monday’s tip when Kidd told the media that McGee would start, he said that the decision to start McGee or Powell would be based on matchups. Well, through the eight games that JaVale has played, he has been out-matched in every single one of them. Is there ever going to be a good matchup when effort and attention to details are lacking?
It's time, coach Kidd.
Crunch time chaos … again
It’s never easy for this team to close out games. There’s been a number of factors for the late-game woes experienced by the Mavericks — turnovers, lackadaisical defensive rotations, Kidd’s rotation patterns — you name it, it’s been an issue.
We saw that again on Monday as the Mavericks let the Nets jump back into the game after blowing an 11-point lead in the final 3:39 of the game. Brooklyn was able to manhandle the glass and get second-chance opportunities while Dallas made boneheaded turnovers down the stretch.
We've seen this over the years for the Mavericks, which normally doesn't happen to quality, contending teams. Yet, Luka and company tend to play with their food a little too much in the final minutes. It’s a real problem that must be addressed soon if Dallas wants to get where they want to be this season.
It’s one thing for a team to get off to slow starts, but to sputter out at the end of games in crunch time as well? It can’t be both if this team wants to make some noise come the postseason.
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