Mavs Donuts: Dallas' Win Streak Continues, Doncic Earns NBA Award
The new-look Dallas Mavericks are on a tear. Dallas has won five of its last six games since trading Kristaps Porzingis for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans, and Luka Doncic's stellar performance in February earned him an award.
Friday's batch of "Mavs Donuts" tastes as good as ever.
Get your dozen!
Donut 1: Mavs Beat Warriors… Again!
Behind another superb effort from Luka Doncic, the Dallas Mavericks rolled over the Golden State Warriors 122-113 Thursday night at American Airlines Center.
Doncic smelled blood in the water early. Scoring 19 first quarter points set the stage for another memorable night in a string of special nights lately. Spencer Dinwiddie continued also his solid play since donning a Mavs uniform with 17 points off the bench.
Donut 2: Doncic Earned February's Player of the Month
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Jerome Miron/USA Today Sports
The NBA officially announced the recipients of the Conference Player of the Month award for February, with the winners being Chicago Bulls' DeMar DeRozan being the Eastern Conference winner and Dallas Mavericks' Luka Doncic being the Western Conference representative.
Doncic carried the Dallas Mavericks to a 7-3 record with averages of 34.7 points (first in NBA), 10.3 rebounds, and 8,8 assists. He led the Mavs in each of those statistical categories while recording four games with at least 40 points and nearly setting the Mavs franchise record for points in a game with 51.
Donut 3: Luka at Center?
Heading into tip-off, Mavericks coach Jason Kidd told reporters the team would deploy Davis Bertans at backup center with Kleber out. He said the team would like to experiment with deploying Luka Doncic at small-ball five, and it could happen as soon as this outing.
The team indeed utilized small-ball lineups vs. the Warriors, helping with switches on defense. Dallas won 122-113.
Donut 4: Former Mavs Chandler Parsons Praises Luka
"If I'm taking one player from now for the future, it's Luka Doncic. I think he's the best player in the NBA," said Chandler Parsons in a recent interview. "What he's done at his age is incredible."
That's some incredibly high praise for Doncic – who just won the NBA Player of the Month award for February – coming from the recently retired former Mavericks forward, and at this particular moment in time, he might not be wrong either.
Donut 5: NFL Suspends COVID Protocol, Will NBA Follow Suit?
The NFL is attempting to put the COVID-19 crisis behind it, as on Thursday comes a report from NFL.com that the league and the NFLPA have agreed to "suspend all aspects of the joint COVID protocols.''
The move is "effective immediately,'' Tom Pelissero writes, adding, "No more masks, tracking devices, mandatory surveillance testing or capacity limits unless required by state and local law.''
Could the NBA be next to follow suit?
Donut 6: Luka's Maturation
Despite nearly giving up another double-digit lead in two consecutive games, the Mavericks stayed the course vs. the Warriors, surviving their fourth-quarter surge.
Doncic spoke with reporters after the game of the Mavs growth.
"We just stayed together," Doncic said. "Mentally, we’re there. We’ve grown up."
Donut 7: On This Day
Sports Illustrated recently covered Shawn Bradley's agonizing reality following his near-death experience when getting his by car while riding his bike. Bradley used to play for the Mavs and should be remembered as a player who was more than a walking dunking prop. Although he's known for getting posterized on dunks and being super tall, he was a good player in his day.
On March 4, 1997, Bradley recorded 10 blocks in a 102-92 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Donut 8: Doncic Hunted LeBron James
Andrew D. Bernstein | Credit: NBAE via Getty Images
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
After coming back from a 21-point deficit against the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, the script was nearly flipped in LA on Tuesday, as the Mavs were the ones who held a 21-point lead over LeBron James' Lakers and almost let it slip.
Being down 15 points at halftime, James turned back the clock in the third quarter, making some big defensive plays and hitting multiple high-difficulty threes, which helped the Lakers win the period, 31-14. As the Lakers built their newfound lead to as much as six points in the fourth, it felt as if the Mavs had blown an excellent opportunity to capture another big road win... until Doncic went head-hunting for 'The King.'
Dallasbasketball.com analyzed the plays where Doncic singled out James as his primary victim Tuesday night.
Donut 9: Dinwiddie Speaks After Win Over Warriors
Following his 17-point performance against the Warriors, Dinwiddie spoke with the Bally Sports Southwest crew. Dinwiddie didn't disappoint.
"It's a credit to the guys. Everyone's telling me to make plays", Dinwiddie responding to a question of his seamless fit in Dallas
"It's not rocket science, these guys encourage me, everyone's encouraging me to be aggressive and make plays"
Donut 10: Lakers Lose Again
The Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Lakers 132-111 on Thursday evening.
Typically, the sun shines in Los Angeles, and everyone talks about how the nice weather. However, lately, the discourse surrounding the city of angels is how bad the Lakers are performing this season.
Going 1-5 in their last six games, the Lakers see themselves in a downward spiral, currently three losses away from slipping out of play-in position.
The Lakers play the Warriors next on Saturday.
Donut 11: Dirk Reminisces
Always a man of honesty, Nowitzki admitted that the 2011 Miami Heat weren't championship ready, but perhaps would have beaten the Dallas Mavericks in the years to come.
“We were super fortunate to run into them in Year 1," Nowitzki said of the 2011 Heat that featured LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh together for the first time. "They were really hesitant. They hadn't figured out their roles yet.”
“I think if we ran into them in Year 3, they probably would have beat us handily,” Nowitzki said.
Donut 12: What's Next for Mavs?
Dallas faces the Sacarmento Kings at the AAC Saturday afternoon. The regular season series is tied 1-1, with the Mavs beating the Kings in their last matchup. Will Dallas continue its hot streak or will Sacramento spoil the run?
