In a drastic change from what has happened in recent years, the Dallas Mavericks have actually been roughing up a few folks this season with their tenacious defense.
It happened again Monday night at American Airlines Center against Denver when the Mavs put their rock ‘em, sock ‘em defense on full display and laid down the law during a 103-89 triumph over the Nuggets. The Mavs’ unique passion on the defensive end of the floor led to their third consecutive victory as they handcuffed the Nuggets into committing an amazing 26 turnovers.
“We’re feeling comfortable with the schemes, being active defensively,” coach Jason Kidd said. “When they have 26 turnovers that means your hands are active, you’re in the right spots and you’re covering for one another.”
Here are our five takeaways from Monday’s 14-point victory over the Nuggets.
DEFENSE RULED THE DAY: For anyone NOT paying close attention, the Mavs have been very resourceful on the defensive end of the court this season. Thanks to the 103-89 win over Denver, the Mavs have now held their last four opponents to less than 100 points. That includes that buzzer-beating 95-94 loss to the Sacramento Kings, a 112-96 win over the Kings, and victories against OKC (95-86) and the Nuggets. The last time the Mavs held four consecutive foes under 100 points was Jan. 30-Feb. 6, 2019 when they perfected that feat in a victory over New York (114-90), a loss to Detroit (93-89), and wins against Cleveland (111-98) and Charlotte (99-93).
THE TURNOVER EFFECT: While filling passing lane and sticking their hands in the cookie jar, the Mavs forced the Nuggets into committing a whopping 26 turnovers. The Mavs used those extra gifts to score 28 points. And that actually turned out to be the ultimate difference in the game, because the Mavs finished with a plus 14 in the points-off-turnovers department, considering Denver tallied 14 points off 11 turnovers by Dallas. The Mavs forced the Nuggets into committing six costly turnovers down the stretch when the game was still up for grabs.
BULLOCK RAINING THREES: Now everyone knows why the Mavs made such a big deal out of signing free agent forward Reggie Bullock. It took him a minute or two to get acclimated to this new surroundings this season, but the dude can flat-out ball from three-point range. Over the past three games – all Mavs wins – Bullock is 12-of-24 from the field, including 9-of-17 from downtown. Against the Nuggets, the nine-year veteran scored 15 points and was 5-of-11 from the floor and 4-of-8 from beyond the 3-point arc. He also basically turned out the lights on this game when he drained back-to-back triples in a 29-second span that put Dallas up, 102-80, with 2:35 left.
LUKA WAS MAGICAL — AGAIN: One day after nearly registering a triple-double in a win against the Oklahoma City Thunder, point guard Luka Doncic was on the cusp of registering another triple-double on Monday against the Denver Nuggets. Doncic finished the game with 21 points, eight rebounds, 15 assists and four steals. That production came one day after he manufactured 14 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists against the Thunder. It’s the second time Doncic has picked up 15 assists in a game this season. The only other player with multiple 15-plus assist games this season is Chris Paul, who also has two.
POWELL CLUTCH IN THE CLUTCH: There’s not much a whole lot of people can do against Denver center Nikola Jokic. He’s the NBA’s reigning Most Valuable Player for a reason. He’s pretty darn good. However, when the Nuggets were still in this game, Dwight Powell made his presence felt against Jokic. Once Jokic got his rest and re-entered the game, the Nuggets were only trailing, 76-72, with 8:22 remaining. And over the ensuing six minutes and 10 seconds, the Mavs outscored Denver, 19-8, and Powell outscored Jokic, 7-4. Powell finished the game with 15 points and was 5-of-6 from the field.
Twitter: @DwainPrice
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