Mavericks at Thunder: Game 75 Preview

Dallas Mavericks (45-29) at Oklahoma City Thunder (42-32)
Wed. Apr. 1, 7:00 at the Chesapeake Energy Arena
TV: FSSW, NBALP
Line: Thunder by 2.5


2014-15 Matchups
Dec. 28 at Dallas
Mavs 112 Thunder 107
Feb. 19 at OKC
Thunder 104 Mavs 89
Mar. 16 at Dallas
Mavs 119 Thunder 115

All-Time Series
Thunder 73 Mavs 69

Team Stats
Mavs
Off. Rating: 106.8 (5th)
Def. Rating: 102.9 (16th)
Point Differential: +3.2
Thunder
Offense: 103.9 (11th)
Defense: 102.2 (13th)
Point Differential: +2.5

Projected Starters
Mavs
PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Monta Ellis
SF: Chandler Parsons
PF: Dirk Nowitzki
C: Tyson Chandler
Thunder
PG: Russell Westbrook
SG: Dion Waiters
SF: Kyle Singler
PF: Enes Kanter
C: Steven Adams

Team Leaders
Mavs
PPG: Ellis, 19.1
RPG: Chandler, 11.4
APG: Rondo, 6.4
PER: Stoudemire, 19.7
Win Shares: Chandler, 9.1
Thunder
PPG: Westbrook, 27.6
RPG: Kanter, 10.7
APG: Westbrook, 8.6
PER: Westbrook, 29.3
Win Shares: Westbrook, 9.5

Of Note

• Monta Ellis is listed as questionable with his hip injury, but practiced on Tuesday and is optimistic about playing. J.J. Barea expects to return after missing four games with a sprained ankle.
• The Thunder are without Kevin Durant who underwent season-ending foot surgery as well as Serge Ibaka with knee soreness.
• The Mavericks have lost in 8 out of their last 9 visits in OKC including the postseason.
• The Mavs have a magic number of 3 to clinch a playoff spot. Any combination of that number of Dallas wins and New Orleans losses will the Mavs in the postseason.
• After averaging 31.2 points, 9.1 rebounds and 10.3 assists per game in February, Russell Westbrook followed that up by averaging 30.9 points, 8.5 rebounds and 10.2. assists for March.

Mavericks at Pacers: Game 74 Preview

Dallas Mavericks (45-28) vs. Indiana Pacers (31-41)
Sun. Mar. 29, 6:00 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse
TV: FSSW, NBALP
Line: Pacers by 1

2014-15 Matchups

Pacers 111 Mavs 100

All-Time Series
Mavs 39 Pacers 27

Team Stats
Mavs
Off. Rating: 106.9 (5th)
Def. Rating: 102.8 (16th)
Point Differential: +3.3
Pacers
Offense: 100.2 (25th)
Defense: 101.3 (10th)
Point Differential: -0.4

Projected Starters
Mavs
PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Devin Harris
SF: Chandler Parsons
PF: Dirk Nowitzki
C: Tyson Chandler
Pacers
PG: George Hill
SG: C.J. Miles
SF: Solomon Hill
PF: David West
C: Roy Hibbert

Team Leaders
Mavs
PPG: Ellis, 19.1
RPG: Chandler, 11.4
APG: Rondo, 6.3
PER: Stoudemire, 20.3
Win Shares: Chandler, 9.1
Pacers
PPG: Hill, 15.9
RPG: West, Hibbert, 7.0
APG: Hill, 4.7
PER: Hill, 21.4
Win Shares: Stuckey, 3.8

Of Note

• Monta Ellis is highly doubtful to play after injuring his right calf against the Spurs on Friday. He has played in 237 straight games.
• J.J. Barea remains questionable with a sprained ankle. He has missed the last three games.
• For the Pacers, Rondey Stuckey (sore calf) and David West (illness) are questionable to play.
• This is the Mavericks final game of the season against the East. They have an overall record of 21-8 including a 13-1 mark on the road.
• The Mavs are 1-6 on the road since the All-Star break, with five of the losses coming by at least 15 points. Their only win is against the lowly Lakers.

Mavericks at Spurs: Game 73 Preview

Dallas Mavericks (45-27) at San Antonio Spurs (45-26)
Fri.. Mar. 27, 7:30 at the AT&T Center
TV: FSSW, NBALP
Line: Spurs by 8

2014-15 Matchups
Oct. 28 at San Antonio
Spurs 101 Mavs 100
Dec. 20 at Dallas
Mavs 99 Spurs 93
Mar. 24 at Dallas
Mavs 101 Spurs 94 

All-Time Series
Spurs 97 Mavs 66

Team Stats
Mavs
Off. Rating: 107.2 (5th)
Def. Rating: 102.8 (16th)
Point Differential: +3.6
Spurs
Offense: 105.4 (7th)
Defense: 100.2 (5th)
Point Differential: +5.0

Projected Starters
Mavs
PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Monta Ellis
SF: Chandler Parsons
PF: Dirk Nowitzki
C: Tyson Chandler
Spurs
PG: Tony Parker
SG: Danny Green
SF: Kawhi Leonard
PF: Tim Duncan
C: Tiago Splitter

Team Leaders
Mavs
PPG: Ellis, 19.3
RPG: Chandler, 11.4
APG: Rondo, 6.4
PER: Chandler, 19.8
Win Shares: Chandler, 9.0
Spurs
PPG: Leonard, 16.0
RPG: Duncan, 9.2
APG: Parker, 4.9
PER: Duncan, 21.9
Win Shares: Duncan, 7.4

Of Note

• The Spurs blowout win over the Thunder on Wednesday put them 1/2 game up on the Mavs for sixth place in the West. A Dallas win would give the Mavs the season series 3-1 and the potential tiebreaker.
• The Mavericks last won a regular season game in San Antonio on Nov 26, 2010.  They have lost eight in a row since at the AT&T Center.
• J.J. Barea will miss his third straight game with a sprained ankle while Richard Jefferson is questionable with back stiffness.
• In three games against the Spurs this year, Monta Ellis is averaging 34 points and shooting 59% from the field and 57% on threes.
• The Mavs win over the Spurs on Tuesday, was the Spurs only loss in regulation in their last 14 games.

Mavericks 101 Spurs 94: Game 72 Recap

The Lead
The Mavs bounce back with a much needed win as Monta ties his season high in scoring.

Box Score

Leaders
Mavs
Points: Ellis, 38
Rebounds: Nowitzki, 13
Assists: Ellis, Rondo, 5
+-: Nowitzki, +15
Spurs
Points: Leonard, 19
Rebounds: Leonard, 9
Assists: four with 3
+-: Ayres, +6

Game Ball
Monta Ellis
38 points, 5 assists, 16-27 FG, 4-4 FT

X-Factor
Dirk Nowitzki
15 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists

Goat Horns
Tony Parker
8 points, 3-11 FG, 4 TO

Play of the Game
Al-Farouq Aminu went baseline for a jam and was fouled to give the Mavs  a game high 17 point lead with 9:55 to go. The Mavs had trailed by as many as 14 in the first half.

Stat of the Game
Monta's 38 points, 23 of which came in the second half,  tied a season high also set against the Spurs. Ellis was coming off a 4-22 shooting outing against Phoenix on Sunday.

Of Note

• Fresh off watching the birth of his second child and first son on Monday, Dirk grabbed his 10,000th rebound of his career, becoming the first player in NBA history with at least 25,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, 1,000 blocks and 1,000 threes.
• J.J. Barea missed his second straight game with a sprained ankle while Richard Jefferson left the game in the first half with back spasms.
• With the Spurs hosting the Thunder on Wednesday, Gregg Popovich sat Tony Parker and Tim Duncan for the entire fourth quarter.
• The win put the Mavs percentage point behind the Spurs for sixth in the West and gave them the edge in the season series 2-1.
• With Barea out, Raymond Felton got 8 minutes of playing time, during which the team was a +10.

Grades
Nowitzki: A-
Parsons: A-
Chandler: B+
Ellis: A+
Rondo: B
Aminu: B
Harris: A-
Stoudemire: B
Felton: B+

Quote of Note
"Too much Monta, don't you think?"
Rick Carlisle postgame

They Tweeted It
 

Dirk should have babies everyday.
— Leigh Ellis (@LeighEllis) March 25, 2015

Next Up
The Mavericks (45-27) will take a couple days off before the rematch against the Spurs (44-26) on Friday in San Antonio.

Mavericks vs. Spurs: Game 72 Preview

Dallas Mavericks (44-27) vs. San Antonio Spurs (44-25)
Tues. Mar. 24, 7:00 at the AAC
TV: TNT
Line: Spurs by 3.5

2014-15 Matchups
Oct. 28 at San Antonio
Spurs 101 Mavs 100
Dec. 20 at Dallas
Mavs 99 Spurs 93


All-Time Series
Spurs 97 Mavs 65

Team Stats
Mavs
Off. Rating: 107.3 (5th)
Def. Rating: 103.0 (16th)
Point Differential: +3.6
Spurs
Offense: 105.2 (7th)
Defense: 100.3 (5th)
Point Differential: +4.7

Projected Starters
Mavs
PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Monta Ellis
SF: Chandler Parsons
PF: Dirk Nowitzki
C: Tyson Chandler
Spurs
PG: Tony Parker
SG: Danny Green
SF: Kawhi Leonard
PF: Tim Duncan
C: Tiago Splitter

Team Leaders
Mavs
PPG: Ellis, 19.0
RPG: Chandler, 11.4
APG: Rondo, 6.4
PER: Chandler, 20.0
Win Shares: Chandler, 9.0
Spurs
PPG: Leonard, 15.9
RPG: Duncan, 9.3
APG: Parker, 5.0
PER: Duncan, 22.0
Win Shares: Duncan, 7.4

Of Note

• This is the first of back-to-back games against the Spurs for the Mavs. The teams will play in San Antonio on Friday.
• J.J. Barea is out with a sprained ankle while Devin Harris is questionable with a illness.
• Manu Ginobili is expected to play after missing the Spurs' last four games with a sprained ankle.
• The Mavericks win over the Spurs on Dec. 20 in Rajon Rondo's first game with the Mavs broke a 10 game regular season losing streak to the Spurs. The Spurs however were without just about every key player.
• Dirk's wife Jessica gave birth to the couple's second child yesterday, a son named Max. Dirk missed shootaround but is expected to play tonight.

Mavericks at Suns: Game 71 Preview

Dallas Mavericks (44-26) at. Phoenix Suns (37-33)
Sun. Mar. 22, 8:00 at the US Airways Center
TV: FSSW, NBALP
Line: Mavs by 3.5

20-14-15 Matchups
Dec. 5 at Dallas
Suns 118 Mavs 106
Dec. 23 at Phoenix
Suns 124 Mavs 115

All-Time Series
Suns 76 Mavs 66


Team Stats
Mavs
Off. Rating: 107.6 (5th)
Def. Rating: 103.0 (16th)
Point Differential: +3.7
Suns
Offense: 104.2 (11th)
Defense: 103.3 (17th)
Point Differential: +0.6


Projected Starters
Mavs
PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Monta Ellis
SF: Chandler Parsons
PF: Dirk Nowitzki
C: Tyson Chandler
Suns
PG: Eric Bledsoe
SG: P.J. Tucker
SF: Marcus Morris
PF: Markieff Morris
C: Alex Len

Team Leaders
Mavs
PPG: Ellis, 19.1
RPG: Chandler, 11.4
APG: Rondo, 6.4
PER: Chandler, 20.2
Win Shares: Chandler, 9.0
Suns
PPG: Bledsoe, 17.0
RPG: Len, 6.6
APG: Bledsoe, 6.0
PER: Wright, 19.4
Win Shares: Bledsoe, 6.4

Of Note

• J.J. Barea will miss the game after spraining his ankle during practice.
• Trade deadline acquisition Brandon Knight is out for Phoenix with a sprained ankle.
• The Mavs are only 2-12 against top 10 teams in the West on the road.
• Former Mav Brandan Wright has averaged 6.7 points and 4.5 rebounds in 19.7 minutes per game in his 29 games as a Sun.
• Amar'e Stoudemire, of course spent his first 8 seasons in Phoenix, where he was a 5 time all-star, a 4 time All-NBA selection and won Rookie of the Yaear.

Mavericks vs. Grizzlies: Game 70 Preview

Dallas Mavericks (44-25) vs. Memphis Grizzlies (47-21)
Fri. Mar. 20, 7:30 at the AAC
TV: FSSW, NBALP
Line: Mavs by 3

2014-15 Matchups
Dec. 9 at Memphis
Grizzlies 114 Mavs 105
Jan. 19 at Memphis
Mavs 103 Grizzlies 95
Jan. 27 at Dallas
Grizzlies 109 Mavs 90

All-Time Series
Mavs 56 Grizzlies 21

Team Stats
Mavs
Off. Rating: 107.7 (4th)
Def. Rating: 102.9 (16th)
Point Differential: +3.9
Grizzlies
Offense: 103.2 (14th)
Defense: 100.1 (5th)
Point Differential: +3.4

Projected Starters
Mavs
PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Monta Ellis
SF: Chandler Parsons
PF: Dirk Nowitzki
C: Tyson Chandler
Grizzlies
PG: Mike Conley or Beno Udrih
SG: Courtney Lee
SF: Jeff Green
PF: Zach Randolph
C: Marc Gasol

Team Leaders
Mavs
PPG: Ellis, 19.2
RPG: Chandler, 11.4
APG: Rondo, 6.5
PER: Chandler, 20.3
Win Shares: Chandler, 8.9
Grizzlies
PPG: Gasol, 17.8
RPG: Randolph, 11.2
APG: Conley, 5.3
PER: Gasol, 21.9
Win Shares: Gasol, 8.7

Of Note

• The Mavs are looking to win four games in a row for the first time since they won six in a row from Dec.26-Jan. 5
• Mike Conley is questionable for Memphis with a sprained ankle.
• Dirk is looking to score 20+ points in three straight games for the first time all season.
• The Grizzlies have struggled of late, losing 7 out of their last 13 games.
• Since losing to the Grizzlies at the AAC on Jan. 27 the Mavericks have gone 10-3 at home.