Doncic and the Mavericks Face the Underrated Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets and the Dallas Mavericks will face off on Wednesday when American Airlines Center in Dallas. Both teams are playing better than advertised so far this year even though both were expected to make the playoffs. Thus far both are looking like they could be serious contenders.
TIME: 7:30 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN, Altitude, FS Southwest; LINE: Mavs -3; O/U: 221
Dallas star Luka Doncic looks to continue his standout season tonight. Doncic recorded 38 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists during Monday’s 118-110 home victory over the Chicago Bulls. It was his ninth 30-point triple-double of the season. That number is one more than the combined total of the rest of the NBA.
Overall, the 20-year-old Doncic has 11 triple-doubles so far. He repeatedly reminds reporters he isn’t all that concerned with the statistical stuff. “For me, all that matters is we got to win,” Doncic said after the victory. “We needed that win. … My team is helping a lot. We just played tough from the start to the end and that’s how it’s got to be.”
The Nuggets also received a huge performance from their star on Monday as center Nikola Jokic scored a career-best 47 points and didn’t commit a single turnover. “He should have had 50,” Denver swingman Will Barton told reporters afterward. “That’s what he does. He just wants to win and play winning basketball. But when he’s dominant down there we’re just a different team. Any time he’s aggressive, that’s always the game plan. We want to play through him.”
This, That, and a Dart Throw
The Nuggets are 25-11 on the season. Barton also stood out. He scored a season-high 28 points on 12-of-20 shooting and collecting nine rebounds to complement Jokic’s huge outing. “I wanted to be aggressive,” Barton told reporters. “I felt like I hadn’t been aggressive over the past couple of games and I just wanted to get back to myself.” Barton was just 12-of-36 shooting over the previous three games before the solid effort against the Hawks. His performance included three 3-pointers.
The Mavericks are 23-13 on the season. Shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr. has been out with a hamstring injury. He returned from a three-game absence and scored 15 points in 22 minutes while providing a significant lift. “I’m happy I was able to make an impact and play within the offense,” Hardaway told reporters. “I credit the guys. They did a phenomenal job of finding me and making it easy for me to knock down shots.” Hardaway also is in awe of Doncic’s play, saying “the rare thing about Luka is he’s doing this at 20. I haven’t really seen any 20-year-old be this effective on both ends of the floor.”
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The Dart Throw: Mavericks 115, Nuggets 105
NBA Trends
Dallas Mavericks
- Trend Over is 6-1 in Mavericks last 7 games as a favorite of 5.0-10.5. Hit % 85.70% (7) O/U 6|1 Push 0 W/L
- Under is 15-7 in Mavericks last 22 games as a home underdog of 5.0-10.5. 68.20% (22) 7|15 0
- Under is 4-0 in Mavericks last 4 games as an underdog of 11.0 or greater. 100.00% (4) 0|4 0
- Over is 5-1 in Mavericks last 6 games as a home favorite. 83.30% (6) 5|1 0
Denver Nuggets
- Trend Over is 6-2 in Nuggets last 8 games as a favorite of 5.0-10.5. Hit % 75.00% (8) O/U 6|1 Push 0 W/L
- Over is 5-1 in Nuggets last 6 games as an underdog of 11.0 or greater. 83.30% (6) 0|4 0
- Under is 5-2 in Nuggets last 7 games as a favorite of 11.0 or greater. 71.40% (7) 2|5 0
- Over is 9-1 in Nuggets last 10 games as an underdog of 0.5-4.5. 90.00% (10) 9|1 0
Nuggets vs Mavericks Meeting Trends
- Trend Nuggets are 2-6 ATS in the last 8 meetings. Hit % 25.00% (8) O/U Push 0 W/L 2|6
- Nuggets are 2-6-1 ATS in the last 9 meetings in Dallas. 25.00% (9) 1 2|6
Stats brought to you by Scores&Stats
Next up:
Denver home to Cleveland Saturday, January 11
Dallas home to Los Angeles Friday, January 10
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