The Dallas Mavericks have now officially played every team in the league after tonight’s matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks. With Playoff positioning as tight as it is, any loss hurts. The fact this was a 132-117 blowout only added insult to injury (there was a recurrence of an actual one of those, too, because that’s how this season is going). Let’s get to the grades!
Kyrie Irving: B+
31 Points / 5 Rebounds / 3 Assists / 1 Steal / 0 Blocks (38 Minutes)
Kyrie dropped in 10 points in the first nine minutes of the game and finished as the Mavs’ leading scorer. His efficiency wasn’t quite there, though he made some big shots and had a real nice play saving an errant pass from going out of bounds, by tipping it to Moses Brown for a score. Kyrie always remains poised and in control and finds ways to do smart things (like drawing a foul on three he had to force to beat the shot clock).
Max Christie: C+
5 Points / 2 Rebounds / 3 Assists / 1 Steal / 0 Blocks (27 Minutes)
Christie was again relatively quiet on a night he couldn’t quite find his stroke on limited shots. He didn’t necessarily play poorly, but just didn’t have much of an impact in general.
Klay Thompson: B
16 Points / 2 Rebounds / 4 Assists / 1 Steal / 0 Blocks (28 Minutes)
Thompson once again shot well from three while shooting somewhat mediocre from inside the arc. That’s not the worst news for the designated sharp-shooter, but if he can connect on a couple more mid-range shots he’s going to be that much more effective in helping the team.
P.J. Washington: N/A
4 Points / 5 Rebounds / 0 Assists / 0 Steals / 0 Blocks (15 Minutes)
Let’s at least give P.J. credit for showing up while clearly not yet recovered from an ankle injury. In the first half he had more fouls (3) than points (2) and was 1-for-6 from the floor including 0-for-3 from three (including an airball). Regarding that ankle injury, it put him back out of action. If there is any positive to that (which there isn’t), it’s that it spares him a grade for the game.
Moses Brown: A-
18 Points / 9 Rebounds / 0 Assists / 0 Steals / 0 Blocks (21 Minutes)
We’re going to miss this guy. With an utterly depleted front line, anyone over 6’8 is a welcome sight, but Brown has given the Mavs valuable minutes. While it may not have been the 20-11 game he put up against the Hornets, he still played his part effectively this evening. At one point in the second quarter, when the Bucks were on a huge run, Brown scored eight-straight points for the Mavs.
Spencer Dinwiddie: C+
12 Points / 0 Rebounds / 3 Assists / 0 Steals / 0 Blocks (20 Minutes)
Dinwiddie was somewhat puzzling. He shot well overall, though his three-point shooting (0-for-3) and free throw shooting (2-for-5) were basically terrible. Much like Christie, he just didn’t leave much of a memorable mark on the game.
Naji Marshall: C+
7 Points / 4 Rebounds / 4 Assists / 4 Steals / 0 Blocks (29 Minutes)
Naji seemed intent on flipping the script on his poor shooting from last game, hitting his first three shots, but he went 0-for-4 the rest of the night and couldn’t hit a three in four attempts. The potential for hot shooting was short lived, though his assist and steal totals were nice to see. Three turnovers all but negated the steals, however.
Jaden Hardy: B+
13 Points / 1 Rebound / 4 Assists / 0 Steals / 0 Blocks (21 Minutes)
Once upon a time in the preseason, I called Jaden Hardy a potential X-Factor for the Mavs. For the most part, he hasn’t been that, but tonight was one of those times where he showed flashes. Case in point was his seven points in six minutes on a perfect 3-for-3 (including a three) from the floor. He finished 5-for-9 and hit half of his six threes. He even got in on the passing game, a necessary contribution as the team only had 24 assists in total.
