Mavericks seek first win of season as they host Toronto Raptors

It has been a disastrous start to the season so far for the Dallas Mavericks. Losing to the San Antonio Spurs on opening night during an iconic performance from Victor Wembanyama is one thing. Following that up with a loss to the Washington Wizards, who won just 18 games last season, is another.

Tempers were already flaring in Dallas. The fanbase is irate after trying to be patient with the Anthony Davis experiment, but losing to the Wizards will change all of that. A loss to the Toronto Raptors, who enter the American Airlines Center on Sunday evening, might cause some protests again.

Toronto enters the game 1-1, starting the season with a somewhat surprising win over the Atlanta Hawks before losing to Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. This is the second straight game that the Mavericks will be facing a team fresh off a loss to the Bucks.

The Raptors are a weirdly constructed team, as they're paying a lot of money to their starting lineup of Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes, and Jakob Poeltl. None of them are particularly great shooters, much like the Mavericks, so this game may be reminiscent of a 2000s game.

Oct 24, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) dribbles against the Milwaukee Bucks in the fourth quarter at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gerry Angus-Imagn Images | Gerry Angus-Imagn Images

In fact, the Raptors and the Mavs are the two lowest teams in three-pointers attempted per game. Most teams are averaging around 40 three-point attempts, while both of these teams are attempting fewer than 28 per game on average. So this could be a real barn burner.

The difference is that the Raptors have a few people comfortable with having the ball in their hands, as Barnes played point guard in college and a little bit in the NBA, and they're starting Quickley. Meanwhile, the Mavericks have absolutely nobody comfortable with handling the ball right now, which is how they ended a game against the Wizards with 21 turnovers.

Dallas' offense is brutal right now. It's clear that someone needs to be traded, probably Anthony Davis, because the spacing and the playmaking are massive issues. Cooper Flagg broke out in the fourth quarter of Friday's game, but he's still figuring out how to mesh with the way this offense is being run. Which is poorly.

If the Mavericks start off the season 0-3, especially with all of these games being at home, there will be some very uncomfortable talks in Dallas. One silver lining is that the Mavs will be wearing their green Classic uniforms, which may be the only pleasant thing to watch in this game.