The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Brooklyn Nets 119-111 Friday night in Dallas. The win is the Mavericks’ fifth in the last six games and is a great way to get back into action after five days off. They’ll head to Utah to face the Jazz on Monday and try to keep playing winning basketball.
Michael Porter Jr. led all scorers with 34 points, but he had several crucial turnovers and bad plays down the stretch that led to the Nets’ loss. He shot 6-of-10 from deep. Anthony Davis led the Mavericks in scoring with 24 points and added 14 rebounds. Cooper Flagg scored 22 points, and Max Christie had 15 points off the bench.
Here are three numbers to know from the game:
66: Mavericks’ paint points
The Nets outshot the Mavericks from behind the arc tonight, but it didn’t matter, because Dallas owned the paint. They outscored Brooklyn by 22 points in the paint. With Davis, Flagg, and P.J. Washington, the Mavericks have a pretty big front court. They’re skilled, too. The Nets big men couldn’t match the output from the Mavericks, and couldn’t put up any defense near the rim. It’s a big reason the Mavericks won the game.
Flagg led all players with eight assists in the game. That’s a great sign for the Mavericks. Flagg is only 18 years old, yet seems to be able to process the floor just about as well as the vets he’s playing with every night. He’ll only get better as the season goes along, and who knows what his playmaking ability will look like two or three years from now.
There can be some frustration from Mavericks fans who want to see him score, but it’s more important for him to get reps making the right play at this point. Especially considering where this Mavericks’ season will likely lead. The scoring will always be there, but it’s fun to see Flagg making passes that lead to buckets, too.
24: Mavericks’ fast break scoring
This Dallas team likes to get out and run. They outscored the Nets by eight points on fast breaks, and that just happened to be the final margin of victory. The way this team is constructed makes it tough to score against set defenses in the half court, so any easy buckets they can pick up on the run are important. And they’ve got the personnel to get it done. Brandon Williams, Ryan Nembhard, Flagg, Christie, and Washington, can get up the floor fast. More importantly, they want to run. Not only does it get Dallas some baskets they desperately need, it’s just plain fun to watch. Hopefully that’s something that remains all year.
