Brunson & Dinwiddie Detonate Jazz; Mavs Star Doncic Prepares for Game 4 Debut
The Dallas Mavericks appear to be in the driver’s seat of their first-round series with the Utah Jazz after stealing back home-court advantage in Game 3… even without superstar Luka Doncic having played a single minute so far.
Led by Jalen Brunson, Spencer Dinwiddie and a handful of other important role players, the Mavs won 126-118 on Thursday in Utah to take a 2-1 series lead. Brunson finished with a team-high 31 points, and Dinwiddie put up 20 points of his own — including a detonating dunk over Rudy Gobert in the third quarter.
On today’s live-recorded episode of the Mavs Step Back Podcast, hosts Dalton Trigg and Matt Galatzan are joined by guests to break down the Game 3 win, Brunson’s dominance in the series, Dinwiddie’s clutch gene, the Mavs’ bench providing a big spark, and much, much more.
One of the more interesting topics brought up was about the future of Gobert if the Mavs take care of business and finish off the Jazz. Before the postseason began, rumors started circulating about Dallas being interested in a potential Gobert trade if Utah decides to blow things up. Given Gobert’s play in this series, should the Mavs still be interested? Trigg explains why his answer to that particular question is still an emphatic “yes.”
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Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images
Taking a look at what’s going on in the rest of the Western Conference playoff bracket, it’s hard not to look ahead a little bit even though the Mavs still have work to do. The top-seeded Phoenix Suns, who are in a 1-1 series battle with the New Orleans Pelicans, will be without superstar Devin Booker for at least two-to-three weeks due to a Grade 1 hamstring strain.
Whether the Suns or Pelicans win the series, this turn of events could impact the Mavs' chances of moving past the second round, especially since Doncic is expected to make his playoff series debut in Game 4 vs. the Jazz.
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