Luka Doncic's Mavs Rally for Victory Over Wizards, Extend Win Streak to 5 Games
DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks (31-23) overcame a poor shooting night to rally back for a 112-104 victory over the rebuilding Washington Wizards (9-44), extending their winning streak to five games. Luka Doncic totaled 26 points, 15 assists, and 11 rebounds, while Kyrie Irving chipped in 26 points, seven rebounds, and four assists.
With Dereck Lively II sidelined, the Mavs elected to start P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford in their second game since being traded to the team.
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Gafford produced another dynamic outing, totaling 16 points, 17 rebounds, and five blocks after playing 24 minutes of action. Washington came up empty on his five perimeter shots, ending the night with nine points, five rebounds, and three assists in 36 minutes.
"Again, the seven offensive rebounds, being able to give us second or third opportunities — I thought he was great tonight," Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. "I thought for Gafford and P.J. to start without a practice, it just shows their versatility. They're pros. I thought they both played well. I thought P.J. did a great job of cutting offensively, and on the defensive end, I thought he did a great job on the ball."
Kyle Kuzma and Deni Avdija did their best to lead the Wizards tonight, but the lack of a superstar was apparent down the stretch when stacking up these two teams. Avdija finished with 25 points, seven rebounds, and three assists. Kuzma added 23 points and eight rebounds. Tyus Jones registered 14 points and 16 assists. Marvin Bagley III also had a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
Both teams struggled to convert from the perimeter, with the Mavs going 9-36 (25.0 percent) and the Wizards shooting 7-32 (21.9 percent) on those attempts. Dallas only had Doncic and Irving as players to make multiple shots from the perimeter while still only shooting 2-7 (28.6 percent) apiece. Landry Shamet was the only Wizards player to convert on more than one shot from deep.
The Wizards' focus was to put Gafford into situations where he had to make a play with the ball as a short roller. He struggled to convert on floater touch early, but the Mavs still led 11-10 midway through the period. Dallas switched up the lineup, deploying Maxi Kleber at the five and having Washington be the screener to be put into the short roll.
The Mavs' offense struggled, with the Wizards emphasizing blitzes and sending an early low man to pack the paint against Doncic. Dallas tried to open up the half-court more by utilizing double-screener actions. Irving was aggressive, scoring 10 points in the first quarter to lead the team to a 26-22 lead after the opening period.
The Mavs began trailing briefly after Tim Hardaway Jr. missed five shots consecutively, a microcosm of the team's offense that period. Doncic checked back in as Dallas began utilizing more two-man game actions involving him and Irving. Washington scored 36 points in the second quarter, compared to 25 from the Mavs, resulting in a 58-51 lead at halftime.
“I think we just got tired of going back and forth with them a little bit. It’s no disrespect to them, but we felt like some of our defensive principles were lagging a little bit," Irving said. "We were a little slow rotating in that first half, and in the second half, we came out swinging. We didn’t want to allow this game to slip out of our hands. It would have been one of those losses where we would have had to look ourselves in the mirror and have a gut check.”
Jordan Poole converted on a 3-pointer early after the break, putting the Wizards up by double figures. The Mavs spent much of the third quarter attempting to rally back but never managed to toe or regain the lead, trailing 88-78 entering the final period.
The Mavs had a solid start to the final period, using a 19-8 scoring advantage to begin the frame to retake a brief lead, with Maxi Kleber hitting a 3-pointer as a small ball five. Jaden Hardy converted on a pair of pivotal 3-pointers during an 8-0 scoring stretch for the Mavs during a night when their shooting was inconsistent.
"I think just the energy picked up. I thought [Jaden] Hardy was great for us. He gave us a spark by getting to the basket and knocking down a 3," Kidd said. "We didn't shoot the three well tonight, but it just shows the versatility of this group. When we got to the paint, we dominated the paint."
Doncic took over scoring, helping push Dallas ahead and to sustain a lead. Doncic found Kleber for a pivotal dunk with about three minutes left but missed a free throw with the chance to convert an and-one. The Mavs matched the Wizards' small ball personnel, who deployed Kuzma at the five, to be able to switch everything.
"I think we talked about that earlier, didn't we, about how good Maxi [Kleber] is? A lot of his stuff doesn't show up on the stat sheet, but just his talk, his willingness to help his teammates when they get beat at the rim, and his verticality," Kidd said. "He put on a great demonstration of verticality tonight. Then he knocked down a big 3 and showed his ability to put it on the floor and finish.
"He's just playing at a high level right now, and we're going to need that as we go forward," Kidd explained. "This wasn't pretty, but we found a way to win. Wasn't our best, but the guys stayed together, and that group out there found a way to put the ball in the basket and get stops."
Dallas led 106-100 with 3:11 remaining in regulation and never trailed again before closing the game. It was a needed comeback effort after trailing by 11 points with around 10 minutes remaining in regulation.
With only one game remaining before the NBA All-Star break, the Mavs will host the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night.
