Winslow Townson/USA Today Sports
Porzingis Struggles as Kemba Leads Celtics Past Mavs 116-106
The Dallas Mavericks had been road warriors through the early stretches of the new regular season, getting off to one of the best road starts in franchise history along the way.
At some point, that streak was always going to be broken, and that's exactly what happened on Monday night, as Kemba Walker led the new-look Boston Celtics past Dallas 116-106, handing the Mavs their first road defeat of the year.
A major reason for the Mavs difficulties on Monday was the inconsistent play of their new star big man, Kristaps Porzinigis, who managed just four points and five rebounds on 1-11 shooting from the field. Porzingis has struggled with consistency since returning to NBA action this season and is shooting just 43.6-percent from the floor for the season.
Luka Doncic, on the other hand, was electric once again, scoring 34 points to go along with nine assists and six rebounds, as he continues his early MVP-level campaign.
In the end, however, Doncic simply did not get enough help from his teammates, with Maxi Kleber finishing second on the team with 15 points, while Dwight Powell and Jalen Brunson each scored 12 points off of the bench.
Unfortunately for Dallas, Kemba Walker came to play as well, with the veteran point guard scoring 29 points of his own while handing out five assists and five rebounds, and shooting 9-17 from the floor and 8-14 from three.
He was also supplemented by a 25-point, 11-rebound outburst from Jaylen Brown, as well as 17 points from combo guard Marcus Smart.
Up next for the Mavs is a trip on Thursday night to Madison Square Garden, where Kristaps Porzingis will make his first return to the Big Apple since being traded to Dallas.
The Mavs are just a few days removed from an embarrassing loss to that same New York team on Saturday night, where Doncic and Porzingis both played arguably their best games of the season.
