Mavs vs. Nets GAMEDAY: Luka Doncic Duels Kevin Durant; Ben Simmons Will Play
The Dallas Mavericks wrap up their five-game homestand on Monday night against the Brooklyn Nets, who will be without star point guard Kyrie Irving due to a suspension.
The Mavs hope to extend their win streak to four games at American Airlines Center. They’re coming off an exciting 111-110 win over the the Toronto Raptors, where Luka Doncic dissected a plethoras of different defensive schemes that were thrown at him. The Nets hope to make it a third consecutive win after victories over the Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards in their last two outings.
Although Irving won't be available, the superstar showdown between Luka Doncic and Kevin Durant still gives us a good chance to get our money's worth out of this game.
Doncic is on a historic pace, as he's scored 30+ points in all eight games to start the season – something that had previously only been done by Wilt Chamberlain. He's averaging 36 points, 8.8 rebounds 8.6 assists and 1.9 steals per game while shooting 52.7 percent from the field.
Meanwhile, Durant is still one of the premier players in the league at age 34. He's averaging 31.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.8 assists and two blocks per game for Brooklyn. The Mavs have been a decent defensive team over the last handful of games, but they'll have their hands full with Durant in this one.
Here’s everything you need to know about tonight’s game:
FLASHBACK: Nearly two weeks ago, the Mavs went to Brooklyn and took down the Nets in overtime, 129-125. Doncic recorded a 41-point triple-double in the win and outlasted Durant and Irving, who combined for 76 points on the night.
With Irving not available to give the Mavs fits, it’ll be interesting to see who else can step up for the Nets to give Durant some much-needed assistance. Dallas has been able to build big leads on its opponents all season long, but it’s been unable to maintain those leads late in games. We should be in for a fun one on Monday night.
Ben Simmons makes his return to action for Brooklyn tonight after missing the last four games due to knee soreness.
PREVIEW POD:
INJURY REPORT (DALLAS): Dāvis Bertans (knee effusion) is OUT. Frank Ntilikina (ankle effusion) is questionable.
INJURY REPORT (BROOKLYN): Kyrie Irving (suspension) and TJ Warren (left foot recovery) are OUT. Ben Simmons (knee soreness) is available.
RECORDS: Dallas Mavericks (5-3), Brooklyn Nets (4-6)
WHEN: Monday, Nov. 7, 2022 at 8:45 p.m. CT
WHERE: American Airlines Center (Dallas, TX)
TV: Bally Sports Southwest (BSSW), NBA League Pass
RADIO: 97.1 The Freak, 99.1 FM Zona MX (Spanish)
ODDS: The Mavs are currently 6.5-point favorites vs. the Nets.
NEXT UP: The Mavs begin a two-game road trip on Wednesday as they take on the young-and-struggling Orlando Magic. Dallas will then face Kristaps Porzingis and the Washington Wizards on Thursday on the second night of a back-to-back.
FINAL WORD: “Just getting off to a better start and not being down 10 or 12, and that next group trying to fight to get it within four or five,” said Kidd of the importance of his team getting off to quick starts.
“Again, quarters one through three were really good (against Toronto) and quarter four we’re awful. We have to get off to better starts. But the biggest question for us is to get better in the fourth quarter, and those are things that we talked about today.”
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