DALLAS, TEXAS- It’s a new year and after a less than ideal start, the Mavericks will host the defending Eastern Conference Champions the Miami Heat in their second home game of the season. Through 4 games so far the Mavericks have struggled to put together a complete and balanced game on the floor, struggling in areas they were league best at last season resulting in a 1-3 start to the new season.
In the Mavericks last game, the team started strong but the flame only lasted so long. The team had a poor shooting performance from the field and beyond the arc, were out rebounded, and outscored in bench points. These are the main areas of emphasis Dallas wanted to improve in prior to the season and it just hasn’t come to fruition just yet. There is still an ample amount of time for Dallas to turn around their 1-3 start. Soon Kristaps Porzingis will return to the starting lineup and with his return most of the blemishes we’ve seen this season will be covered up by the unicorn, but the Mavericks still need to win games and tonight they can take that first step.Â
The history between the Mavericks and Heat go back to the days of Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal besting the Dirk Nowitzki led Mavericks in the 2006 NBA Finals in six games. The Mavericks returned the favor in the 2011 NBA Finals defeating the Miami “Big 3” which featured Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh in not 1, not 2, not 3, but 6 games. (Kudos if you get the reference). Mavericks and Heat are an unofficial rivalry in the eyes of many and the recent matchups have lived up to the hype.
The Mavericks and Heat ties go much deeper than just their rivalry. Josh Richardson spent his first four seasons with the Heat and became a standout starter for the team. Tim Hardaway Jr. is a native of Miami and his dad Tim Hardaway Sr. is a legend in Miami and James Johnson also had a stint in a Heat jersey as well.
The Heat have beat the Mavericks 6 straight times in their recent matchups, but both teams have had inconsistent starts to begin the season. Miami have won 2 of their games by 11 points and 13 points, but lost to the Bucks on Tuesday by 47, two days after the Mavericks beat the Clippers by 51 points. The Heat won their last matchup against the Bucks 119-108 which is a 58 point turnaround from their previous performance.
The Mavericks and Heat are two good teams but are still trying to get it going on all cylinders.
Dallas will have their hands full again defending the paint as Bam Adebayo has become one of the better athletic big men in the league. Defending the three will also be a challenge for the Mavericks after allowing the Hornets to shoot 44% from three in their loss on Wednesday. Duncan Robinson put on a clinic from beyond the arc in the bubble and has continued to do so this season, and Goran Dragic can also present a threat from the three point line.
With Jimmy Butler possibly missing this game, the Heat will probably have Bam Adebayo guard Luka Doncic who has had a slow start to the season by all measures. Doncic through 4 games per usual has a productive stat line, but hasn’t been able to find the bucket from three. Doncic currently has a 9% three point percentage which is the most surprising stat so far this season, and his performance from three has been attributed to the Mavericks shortcomings on offense this season.
The challenge for Dallas tonight will not be to win the first three quarters of the game, but to sustain leads if they get one early. That has been a discouraging aspect of their game so far this season. The expectation is that the Mavericks go into this game hungry after a loss in their home opener and regain some momentum as the New Year starts and their team gets healthier, more cohesive, and see a much better performance from the field and three point line from the starting lineup and bench players.
