Unable to finish the job, the Dallas Mavericks suffered a 105-98 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night at Footprint Center.
Although they played without injured All-Star point guard Luka Doncic, the Mavs were neck-and-neck with the defending Western Conference champions all the way until the end. Here are our takeaways from the game that left the Mavs with a 9-5 record.
5 TAKEAWAYS FROM THE 105-98 LOSS TO SUNS
FOURTH QUARTER MELTDOWN: After looking so promising on defense through the first three quarters when they held the Suns to just 68 points, the Mavs took a giant step backward defensively in the fourth quarter when Phoenix scored a whopping 37 points. It was almost like a totally different game defensively for the Mavs in the fourth quarter, because whatever they did in the first three quarters completely stymied whatever the Suns were attempting to do offensively.
MISSING LUKA: That long 48-minute journey to get to the winner’s circle fell short. A case can be made that had point guard Luka Doncic been available, things likely would have turned out in the Mavs’ favor. After all, the Mavs led for about 90 percent of this game. And when things got rough in the waning moments after the game was tied at 96, that’s where a superstar like Doncic could have settled everyone down and personally dragged the Mavs across the finish line. But Doncic was sidelined with a sprained left knee and a sprained left ankle.
NTILIKINA-BURKE WERE SOLID: The Mavs can’t ask for much more than what they received from Frank Ntilikina and Trey Burke. Before the game, coach Jason Kidd said he was going to lean on those two reserve guards to come off the bench and provide a spark, and boy did they ever. Ntilikina scored 13 points and was 5-of-8 from the field and 3-of-3 from three-point range in 18 minutes. The seldom-used Burke scored 10 points in 15 minutes and was 4-of-7 from the floor and 2-of-2 from downtown.
PORZINGIS KEEPS STEPPING UP: Although he said he left his legs back at the hotel Wednesday night, Kristaps Porzingis continues to shine and continues to put up impressive numbers. The big man produced 21 points, eight rebounds, a career-high seven assists and two blocked shots while establishing himself as the Mavs’ solid No. 2 man. Porzingis also was a plus 9 – a team high – in the 32 minutes he played, and converted seven of his 20 attempts from the floor.
BRUNSON’S NEAR TRIPLE-DOUBLE: Jalen Brunson almost manufactured a triple-double while starting in place of the injured Luka Doncic. The fourth-year guard from Villanova finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Brunson was 8-of-18 from the field and 2-of-4 from beyond the three-point arc while playing an all-around solid floor game. Normally the first guard off the bench, Brunson proved once again that he can be just as effective as a starter as he can be coming off the bench.
Twitter: @DwainPrice
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