Mavs-Blazers preview: Luka may return; focus must be high, regardless

During a long season of ups and downs, there are certain games in which championship-level teams need to care of business and deposit wins in the bank.

Monday’s match with the Portland Trail Blazers qualifies in that category.

The Blazers are an improving team, but they aren’t ready to challenge for anything other than possibly the No. 1 lottery pick and the rights to next summer’s top prize, Cooper Flagg.

But the Mavericks are in a stretch of the schedule where they can’t afford any slippage. They had a superb hot streak through November and early December, when they won 11 of 12 games.

But they have only split their last four games and after the Blazers come through, the Mavericks have a trickier stretch of schedule starting with Minnesota on Christmas Day. Then there’s a four-game trip that includes games at Phoenix and Houston.

And when they return to American Airlines Center for their first home game of 2025, they’ll have to tangle with the Cleveland Cavaliers, who lead the Eastern Conference.

Coach Jason Kidd often refers to the NBA season as a marathon. If that’s the case, this is the point in the race where you can’t let a little cramp in the leg slow you down.

The Mavericks simply cannot allow themselves to overlook any game that they are heavily favored to win, and they are 9½-point favorites against a Portland team that has lost seven of its last eight games, including Saturday’s 114-94 loss at San Antonio.

Here’s what else to look for in the second of four meetings against the Blazers this season.

• This also will be the first of three games against Portland in an 18-day span. The Mavericks visit Moda Center on Saturday and the Blazers come back to AAC on Jan. 9.
• Luka Dončić has been upgraded to questionable for the game. He’s missed the past two games with a left heel contusion. Jaden Hardy (right ankle sprain) remains out. For the Blazers, Delano Banton (hip) is questionable and Matisse Thybulle (right ankle sprain) is out. The Blazers will be much healthier than when the Mavericks beat them 137-131 on Dec. 1. In that game, Portland was without rookie center Donovan Clingan and highly regarded second-year point guard Scoot Henderson. Both will be playing Monday. In the first meeting, Quentin Grimes had a season-best 28 points and a career-high five steals.
• The Blazers aren’t winning a lot of games, but they do have a couple of supremely athletic young players. Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons, both of whom average 17.7 points. Clingan, the 7-2 rookie center, who averages six points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game.
• In the loss at San Antonio, Sharpe had 25 points on 11-of-16 shooting, including 3-of-6 from long distance.
• The Mavericks are 1-1 on the home stand after splitting games with the Los Angeles Clippers. In their win on Saturday, they had eight players score in double figures, including Dereck Lively II, who added on 11 rebounds to go with his 11 points.

PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (9-19) at MAVERICKS (18-10)

WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Monday.

WHERE: American Airlines Center, Dallas

TV: KFAA, MAVS TV STREAM

RADIO: KEGL 97.1 FM, 99.1 FM Zona MX (Spanish)

X: @ESefko