Lakers at Mavs Preview: LeBron, Kyrie & Luka Make Waves in Dallas
Anytime LeBron James comes to town, rumblings ensue. In addition to James' presence at the American Airlines Center on Sunday afternoon, Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving adds a whole new spice to the basketball affair.
James and Irving's relationship alludes to some peppery possibilities for the summer. With both former teammates commenting on what could have been following Irving's arrival in Dallas, Sunday's contest vs. the Los Angeles Lakers pits the “will-they-won't-they” duo against each other.
Despite winning a championship with the Lakers, James hasn't experienced basketball bliss since, and one could argue the 2020 NBA championship gets drowned out by the dysfunction of the last two Lakers seasons. However, despite such a fall from grace after only a few years, James has the upper hand over Irving regarding regular season matchups.
Although splitting victories in the last four games against each other, Irving hasn't played James since 2021. Now, with James’ Lakers having a revamped squad, free of the burden of pleasing Russell Westbrook, and Irving, relieved and rejuvenated with a younger superstar in Luka Doncic with the Mavs, the two collide in better situations.
The last time the Mavs battled the Lakers, it was a drama-filled contest. Ending in double overtime, following two clutch three-point shots by Doncic, Dallas slid by a feisty LA team 119-115. Naturally, win or lose, James provides the dramatics. While contemplating trades for the summer seems like a wasteful exercise at this point in the season, accounting for James being a steadfast pursuer of everything he wants deems it a reasonable thought.
DallasBasketball.com has covered the hypothetical trades involving James reassembling with Irving and why they make sense when reading the tea leaves. However, when tipoff occurs, the game is played, and the what-if scenarios fly out the window until the contest's end.
While the Mavericks haven't expressed much interest in defense this season, perhaps they should start vs. the Lakers. Anthony Davis averaged 25 points and 12 rebounds against the Mavs in 31 career games. However, Davis' injury issues caused him to miss many games against Dallas. The last time Davis faced the Mavs was in 2021.
Speaking of injuries, Maxi Kleber (hamstring) and Davis Bertans (calf) are listed as out, and D'Angelo Russell (ankle) is marked as doubtful.
Between staving off the idea of fantasy offseason pairings and a rare unibrow sighting, the Mavs have much to contend with on Sunday afternoon.
FUN FACT: Newly-acquired Mav Justin Holiday made the most of his minutes vs. the San Antonio Spurs on February 23. In 21 minutes, the buyout signee registered 15 points on 5-6 shooting from deep.
RECORDS: Dallas Mavericks (32-29, Los Angeles Lakers (28-32)
WHEN: Sunday, February 26, 2023 - 2:30 p.m. CT
WHERE: American Airlines Center, (Dallas, TX)
TV: ABC
RADIO: 97.1 The Freak
ODDS: The Mavs are four-point favorites over the Lakers.
NEXT UP: The Mavs host the Indiana Pacers on February 28.
FINAL WORD: With the final stretch of the season underway, Dallas only has so much room for error in a jam-packed Western Conference playoff race. Dropping games to lesser opponents is a recipe for play-in status if the Mavs aren't careful. Although the Lakers don't have the record of a postseason-quality team, the rejuvenated squad shouldn't be taken lightly.
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