A team full of veterans would say these were just two wins. The Mavs have plenty of them in the locker room, but they’re making a slight exception this time around.
In beating San Antonio and Cleveland in back-to-back games, Dallas ended two long droughts in as many days. The Mavericks had lost 12 straight regular-season games at the AT&T Center, dating back to Nov. 26, 2010. They hadn’t defeated a LeBron James team in Dallas in the regular season since that same 2010-11 season — ironically enough, on Nov. 27, a day after winning in San Antonio.
For a Mavs team slowly rounding back into form after a disappointing 4-17 start, the pair of wins accomplishes two things: It obviously helps Dallas in the standings, but more importantly it creates some belief that maybe the Mavericks, winners of seven of their last 10 games, can keep this roll going.
“Yeah, it’s two wins, but it’s two big wins, it’s two momentum wins,” Wesley Matthews said. “We dropped to San Antonio two times when we could have easily had those games, should’ve had those games. We got beat by 40 in 24 minutes in Cleveland earlier this year.
“So it’s a testament to our character, our resolve, that edge, that chip that we have, remembering we should’ve got San Antonio earlier. We got embarrassed by Cleveland.”
The Mavericks have had a constantly shifting rotation this season due to an overwhelming number of injuries, which played a significant role in the team’s 4-17 start. But since losing by 31 at home to Sacramento on Dec. 7, the Mavericks are 14-13. Across the entire season, that pace would have them within striking distance of the sixth seed in the West, as opposed to eighth place. Dallas is currently four games behind Denver for the final playoff spot.
Since the beginning of 2017, the Mavericks have taken their play up another notch. Dallas has the fifth-best net rating in the NBA in the month of January, at 4.2, and an 8-6 record to show for it. They rank sixth in defensive efficiency, allowing just 103.7 points per 100 possessions, and 13th in offense. Much of that can be contributed to the red-hot shooting of Seth Curry and, more recently, a couple impressive performances by 10-day signee Yogi Ferrell, who outscored Kyrie Irving 19-18 in the Mavs’ victory on Monday night. Curry wasn’t playing near this level and Ferrell was in the D-League during that 4-17 start.
But it’s hard to overlook the positive influence Dirk Nowitzki has made on the offense since returning on Dec. 23. Dallas has scored at least 120 points per 100 possessions with the German on the floor in five of his last nine appearances, and the team is 7-2 during that time. Nowitzki has long preached that you can’t get too high with the highs or too low with the lows in this league, but these last two wins in particular have meant a little something more, even to him. Only eight teams beat both the Spurs and Cavs during the entire 2015-16 season, and the Mavericks did it in just two days.
“It’s always special to go against some of the best in the league,” he said. “We haven’t won in San Antonio in the regular season in seven years, so that was a great win. And then, obviously, the next night you see the champs. It doesn’t get any easier in this league. But that’s the reason why I still play, because I love to compete and I love to compete against the best.”
Up next for the Mavericks is the Philadelphia 76ers, surprising winners of 10 of their last 15 games behind the stunning play from Joel Embiid. While Embiid will likely not play on Wednesday night as he’s dealing with an injury, and Philly’s record on the season might not dazzle, the Mavs know they’ve got to approach each game the same way.
“It’s easy to play back-to-back when you’re playing against great teams, you’re playing in good environments, the games are close, you’re blood’s going,” Harrison Barnes said. “But when you’re playing against a team like (Philly), that’s when the maturity comes up. Can we still play hard? Can we still dive on the floor? Can we still get riled up and have the high level of energy and focus that we had when we’re not going against All-Stars?”
So, in other words, it’s OK to enjoy these two wins for a day, but after that, it’s back to business — or else not only were these two wins all for naught, but the playoff chase will become significantly more challenging. The Mavericks have eight more games before the All-Star break, five of which come at home. It’s as good, and necessary, a time as any to go on a run.
“There’s been a few good wins here and there sprinkled throughout the season, but really to make a push here, in the hole we started, 3-15 or whatever, you gotta string a few wins together,” Nowitzki said. “You gotta win five, six, seven in a row to really make a push here before the All-Star break. It’s gonna be tough, but I think we’ve got the wits and the experience to do it. It’s gonna be a fight.”
Added Wesley Matthews, whose motivational speeches will always put those within earshot at risk of running through a wall: “We believe. We’re not gonna stop believing until numerically it is not a possibility. That’s not the case. And we’re gonna fight, and we’re gonna grind, and we’re gonna do it together.”
Share and comment