3 Overreactions as Mavericks Lose 9th Straight, Lakers' LeBron James Drops Triple-Double

The Dallas Mavericks and the Los Angeles Lakers met in L.A. on Thursday night for the final game before the All-Star Break, and this game was missing nearly all the stars. Cooper Flagg was diagnosed with a midfoot sprain on Wednesday, which will cost him his first All-Star experience in the Rising Stars Game. Luka Doncic is still dealing with a hamstring injury, which was the biggest reason to watch any matchup between these teams.

However, we had LeBron James and Naji Marshall, so we had a ballgame.

This game was defined by the Lakers taking a large lead, and the Mavericks coming back, at least initially. The Lakers roared out to a 14-4 lead because of 8 early points from LeBron James. The Mavericks immediately went on a 14-2 run, ended by threes from P.J. Washington and Khris Middleton to tie the game and eventually take the lead with a lob to Marvin Bagley III.

The Lakers would lead by five at the end of the first quarter, but the Mavs quickly tied it at the start of the second quarter. Los Angeles then ripped off an 11-1 run that put them up by 13, getting a few dunks from Jaxson Hayes in the process. One thing they were doing really well was getting out and converting in transition.

But just as the Lakers looked to be taking control, the Mavericks came right back with a 12-0 run at the end of the first half, which made it just a one-point game, 64-63. And a lot of that run was fueled by Naji Marshall, who scored 9 of those points.

The Mavericks would take a brief 71-70 lead at the start of the third quarter, but it would be all Lakers from there. Six minutes later, they were up by 14 as Jarred Vanderbilt, Maxi Kleber, and Luke Kennard all hit threes. The Lakers were able to coast from there, going up by as much as 20 in the first quarter. They'd eventually win 124-104.

Here are three overreactions from the ninth straight loss for the Mavs.

1. The Mavericks Are No Longer a Good Defensive Team

Feb 12, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is fouled by Dallas Mavericks forward Marvin Bagley III (35) in the first half at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Even though the Mavericks were bad to start the season, they were still at least a tough team to score on. That has not been the case in this recent stretch. Yes, they've been playing better teams, but that's no excuse to allow an average of 121.7 points per game in these last nine games.

2. The Perfect Guys to Lead the Tank Command

Feb 10, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Jordan Goodwin (23) goes for the ball dribbled by Dallas Mavericks forward Khris Middleton (20) in the second half of the game at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Arianna Grainey-Imagn Images | Arianna Grainey-Imagn Images

The Dallas Mavericks are absolutely tanking right now. They won't come out and say it, but they absolutely are. Naji Marshall and Daniel Gafford would be ruled out for minor injuries in the fourth quarter, and we saw Tyus Jones have zero desire to score, Marvin Bagley have no free-throw shooting ability and be poor on defensive pick-and-roll coverage, and AJ Johnson just be athletic for a couple of minutes. There is truly no better tank brigade.

3. 9 Straight Losses...

Feb 3, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd looks on against the Boston Celtics during the first quarter at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Oddly enough, the last time the Mavericks lost nine straight games in a season was the year before Dirk Nowitzki's rookie year, a stretch in which the Mavericks lost 15 straight games from early December to early January of the 1997-98 season. The leading scorer of that team, Michael Finley, is now a co-General Manager of the team. And if that's not proof this team is tanking, I don't know what is.

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