PREVIEW
UTAH JAZZ (0-1) AT MAVS (0-0)
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Place: American Airlines Center, Dallas
TV: Bally Sports Southwest, NBA TV
Radio: The Eagle 97.1 FM; Univision 99.1 FM (Spanish)
About the Mavericks: Yes, it’s a preseason game, but it’s still the beginning of the Jason Kidd era. Kidd replaced Rick Carlisle – he’s now the coach of the Indiana Pacers – as the Mavs’ new coach during the offseason. Kidd previously coached the Brooklyn Nets to a second-round playoff berth in the 2013-14 season. He also coached the Milwaukee Bucks from 2014-18 and made two playoff appearances . . . In order to give more players a look tonight, Kidd said starters Dorian Finney-Smith and Dwight Powell – and backup guard Frank Ntilikina – will not suit up tonight. Kidd also said Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis will likely play just the first half . . . In a survey of the 30 NBA general managers released by NBA.com on Tuesday, Doncic was picked to finish second in the league’s Most Valuable Player race this season behind the Nets’ Kevin Durant. Doncic picked up 33 percent of the votes to 37 percent for Durant. However, with 43 percent of the votes, the GM’s chose Doncic as the player who they would pick as the top selection to start an NBA franchise today. . .Porzingis is entering this season fully healthy for the first time since 2017-18, when Porzingis was playing for the New York Knicks, and Porzingis was selected to the Eastern Conference All-Star team that season . . . Reggie Bullock, Moses Brown and Sterling Brown are the Mavs’ top three offseason acquisitions who will be on the court tonight.
About the Jazz: Utah opened preseason play Monday with a 111-85 loss at the San Antonio Spurs. The Jazz trailed by 11 at the half and by 87-61 after the third quarter. Jared Butler (16 points), Jordan Clarkson (11 points) and Donovan Mitchell (10 points) led the Jazz in the opener. Mitchell, who made the last two All-Star teams, was an uncustomary 5-of-19 from the field . . . Two-time All-Star center Rudy Gobert did not play against the Spurs. Gobert has captured the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award three times, including last season. . .Sharpshooter Joe Ingles (coach’s decision), Bojan Bogdanovic (right shoulder soreness) and Rudy Gay (left foot surgery) also didn’t play against San Antonio . . . Ex-Baylor forward Royce O’Neale is in his fifth season with the Jazz. . .Center Hassan Whiteside, once courted by the Mavs when he was a Miami Heat free agent, is in his first season with the Jazz. This is Whiteside’s fourth team since 2019. In addition to the Heat and Jazz, he also played for the Portland Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings since 2019. . .During this past Saturday’s practice, Mitchell switched from his normal No. 45 jersey and wore No. 22 as a tribute to University of Utah football players Aaron Lowe and Ty Jordan. Lowe was fatally shot in Salt Lake City on Sept. 26 less than a year after gunfire also took Jordan’s life in Salt Lake City. Both Lowe and Jordan were high school teammates at West Mesquite High School.
Twitter: @DwainPrice
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