Here are my 5 takeaways from the Dallas Mavericks’ 103-98 win over the Chicago Bulls on Monday night at the United Center:
1. FINNEY-SMITH IS A LOCKDOWN DEFENDER: Just in case you didn’t know it, let me be the first to tell you that Dorian Finney-Smith is a lockdown defender. Starting in place of the injured Wesley Matthews, Finney-Smith held Zach LaVine to 26 points. OK, when a player scores 26 points, a good night in getting those 26 points is if it occurred when that player took between 13-17 shots. Levine was 8-of-23 from the field. And 10 of his points came from his production at the free throw line. He also committed seven of Chicago’s 17 turnovers while being harassed by Finney-Smith.
2. MAVS CAN WIN ON THE ROAD: They’ve been very close to doing this before, but the Mavs finally got their first road win of the season. A walk down memory lane reveals that blown 26-point lead and 111-104 loss in Atlanta. With the score tied, Dennis Smith Jr. missed a free throw with 2.5 seconds left and the Mavs lost in overtime in San Antonio, 113-108. And Wesley Matthews fouled LeBron James on the perimeter with just 2.1 seconds left, and James hit the second of two free throws as the Lakers nipped the Mavs, 114-113. But this time the Mavs were poised when the Bulls tried to make a comeback.
3. MAVS WON WHEN DONCIC HAD AN OFF-NIGHT: For the first time this season the Mavs won a game when Luka Doncic had an off-night. Doncic was just 3-of-12 from the field and tallied 11 points. It was the second-fewest points of his young career, topped by the 10 points he scored on opening day against Phoenix. This also was just the second time the Mavs won a game where Doncic didn’t lead them in scoring. Back on Oct. 22 when the Mavs beat the Bulls in Dallas, Wesley Matthews led Dallas in scoring with 20 points – Doncic scored 19. On Monday, Harrison Barnes led the Mavs in scoring with 21 points.
4. DEFENSE DOING ITS THING: Don’t look now, but the Mavs have suddenly strung together back-to-back impressive defensive performances. Not only did the Mavs hold the Bulls to 98 points, but they also limited them to 39.3 percent shooting from the field and forced them into going just 8-of-33 from 3-point range. This comes on the heels of Saturday’s 111-96 win over Oklahoma City when the Thunder shot just 39.2 percent from the field and was only 9-of-34 from 3-point territory. These are the only two times all season that the Mavs have held an opponent under 100 points.
5. BENCH SHOWED ITS GRIT AGAIN: The Mavs depend so heavily on their second unit to help them win games. And that second unit came through again in impression fashion. Overall, the Mavs reserves outscored their Chicago Bulls counterparts, 46-26. J. J. Barea tallied 14 points, Maxi Kleber scored 12 and Dwight Powell added 11. The Mavs’ starters were 20-of-51 from the field and 5-of-23 from 3-point land, while their reserves were 17-of-29 from the field and 5-of-10 from 3-point range. This solid performance came following last Saturday’s 15-point win over Oklahoma City when the Mavs reserves won that battle, 53-22.
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