Surprise Rise! Playoff-Clinching Mavs Move to 3rd in West After Warriors Loss
Things are going as well as they possibly can be for the Dallas Mavericks as the NBA regular season winds down. Not only are the Mavs winning games ahead of the postseason – they've won three in a row and five of their last six with five games remaining – but they seem to be getting all the favorable breaks from other teams in the Western Conference standings as well.
On Wednesday night, Dallas (48-29) went into Cleveland and took down the Cavaliers (42-34) on the second night of a back-to-back, 120-112. Luka Doncic followed up his 34-point triple-double against the Lakers by nearly notching another one, as he finished with 35 points, nine rebounds and 13 assists against the Cavs. Dorian Finney-Smith also pitched in with a career-high 28 points.
Shortly after that game went final, the Minnesota Timberwolves (43-34) lost to the Toronto Raptors (44-32), which helped the Mavs officially clinch a playoff spot for the third-straight year.
© David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
© David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Then, for the nightcap, the league-leading Phoenix Suns (62-14) did the Mavs one more favor by taking down the Golden State Warriors (48-29) on the road. With the loss, Golden State is now tied with Dallas in the West standings, but as the Mavs won the season series 3-1, they own the tiebreaker and move into third place.
Coach Jason Kidd suggested the team doesn't want to get too caught up in scoreboard-watching.
“I’m not worried about Minnesota losing or Denver losing or Golden State losing,” Kidd said. “We’re just trying to take care of what’s in front of us right now, and that was Cleveland.''
In the Mavs' remaining five games, only one is against a team with a winning record – a Sunday matinee game against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the reigning champion Milwaukee Bucks (47-28).
© David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
© David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
© David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Of the Warriors' remaining five games, four of their opponents (Utah Jazz, Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs, New Orleans Pelicans) still have a lot to play for, so there seems to be a good chance of the Mavs retaining the third seed if they can take care of business.
Regardless of where the Mavs ultimately end up in the playoff bracket, the team and fans alike should be proud of how this season has unfolded. Who would've thought in late December – when the Mavs fell to 16-18 – that they'd be nearly 20 games over .500 and be a top-three team in the West with just a handful of games to go?
Doncic, coach Jason Kidd and the rest of the crew won't be satisfied by just getting home-court advantage or a top-three seed, though. It's been 11 years since the Mavs have made it out of the first round. Anything short of winning a playoff series this year would be viewed as a disappointment for Dallas, despite the impressive rise to being one of the West's best.
The Mavs will now face old friend Kristaps Porzingis and the Washington Wizards (33-43) in D.C. on Friday night. Two more wins would give Dallas a 50-win season for first time since 2015.
“Going into Washington,'' Kidd said, "I’ll talk more with the staff about the timing of starting to talk about home court ... We fight for home court.''
