Mavs Game Observations: Game 11 @ Warriors [Game of the Week]

Another clutch game lost on details—this time, sent to sleep by a Splash Brother

Photo by Ezra Shaw / Getty Images

We’re 11 games into the season, and it seems like the world is falling apart for the Mavericks after another disappointing 120-117 loss to the Golden State Warriors.

It’s not easy to keep a cool head after a stretch like this—losing a third straight game on a final possession to a Western Conference rival, with the process once again falling apart down the stretch. Yet, this is exactly what the Mavericks need to do. The NBA season is a marathon, not a sprint, and things always look different in April than they do in November. Now, the Mavericks will need to start figuring things out quickly if they want to reach April in the place they all envisioned.

The Western Conference is a bloodbath. And while the Mavericks look like they’re still searching for answers in early-season mode, most of their competitors are going full throttle. As predicted, the Warriors certainly did last night. They were the more physical team. A team with clearer identity. A team that knew what to do when things got tough on both ends.

On the other end, were the Mavericks and Jason Kidd, still in full search mode, looking for any kind of consistency as players jump back and forth between being out of the rotation and closing games in clutch lineups.

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Today’s notes:

1. Details and focus: another early hole

2. Details and focus: another collapse on the boards

3. A difficult conversation about the clutch process

Bonus points: Moral victories are all we've got

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1-Details and focus: another early hole

It would be easy to start with another clutch breakdown (and I'll get there I promise), but I can’t overlook yet another bad—and this time, overly emotional—start. The Mavs built themselves another early hole, just like they did against the Nuggets and Suns.

I get that everyone was hyped for Klay Thompson to have a great game, but you can’t force anything against such a well-orchestrated defense as the Draymond Green-led Warriors. The Mavericks had six early first quarter turnovers, and an even more frustrating fact is that they didn’t come from Dončić or Irving trying to score or create, but rather from others—Thompson, Marshall—trying to do too much with the ball.

While it was clear that Thompson was forcing things a bit early, Marshall’s struggles were a direct result of the Warriors' defensive strategy. In my preview, I noted that Green would roam off Marshall, creating havoc and providing help all over the floor—which happened frequently. More concerning than the turnovers is the fact that, after getting blocked by Green on his first three-point attempt, Marshall didn’t look to shoot again. Although he can compensate by driving, there are situations where this hesitation hurts the offense, which explains why Naji played only 22 minutes.

2-Details and focus: another collapse on the boards

The best way for the Mavericks to avoid losing clutch games is to not let them get close in the first place. As frustrating as the ending was, the Mavericks shouldn’t lose a game in which they shot better and had a higher free-throw rate than the Warriors

But once again, adding to the turnovers woes, Mavericks downfall was inability to protect the glass and rebound. Kevon Looney was the epitome of Steve Kerr's low-minutes, maximum-energy concept. In less than 15 minutes, the Warriors' big man outworked every Maverick in front of him, grabbing 9 of the Warriors’ 18 offensive boards. Lively, Gafford, Dončić—nobody could box out or match the physicality and tenacity of Looney and the other Warriors crashing the boards.

And that, my friends, is how we end up in another clutch game.

3- A difficult conversation about the clutch process

The last five minutes, ending with yet another hero-ball, off-balance, contested Dončić missed three, were the microcosm of this game. As frustrating as those shots are—and yes, they’re tough to watch when they don’t go in, like they did in Minnesota—there’s context behind the process that put the Mavericks in that situation.

The first area where there was a stark contrast in process between Dallas and Golden State was in minutes played. Dončić logged yet another game with over 40 minutes, while Irving and Thompson were in the mid to high thirties.

Compare that to the Warriors, where Curry played 35 minutes, Wiggins 33, Green 32, and ten players logged at least 10 minutes. No Warrior has played 40 minutes in a game yet this season, and it was clear how much fresher they were down the stretch. It’s time for Dončić, Kidd, and the rest of the team to have a serious discussion about Dončić's (and to lesser extent Irving’s) minutes.

The second area where both teams looked vastly different was in their process of creating and preventing advantages on both ends. The Warriors knew exactly what to do—whether it was hunting for Dončić and Lively switches on offense or preventing the same from happening to Curry on the other end.

The differences were eye-popping. The Warriors trapped or blitzed Dončić and Irving for most of the night, had Green ready to jump in whenever a small advantage was created, and pushed Wiggins to fight over screens to avoid Curry switches—which he mostly managed to do. The Mavericks gave up the initial switch without any resistance, with bigs often caught dropping back and a second too late when the second handoff or screen came for Curry. They chose not to trap Curry to the bitter end, leaving Lively to defend on an island for the final dagger—despite Curry being on a heater and Lively previously struggling to contain the drive.

Here’s where the initial comment about a clear identity and rotation for the Warriors—and the Mavericks still searching for theirs—comes into play. Curry, Green, and Wiggins have faced these situations in countless battles, even winning a title together. Meanwhile, the Mavericks had Grimes, trying to create a switch with guard-to-guard screens for both Dončić and Irving, in that role for the first time. Grimes, who was a DNP last game, ended up playing crucial clutch minutes last night. Marshall was in that spot in Denver, and Dinwiddie against Phoenix.

There is also no clear-cut starter or closer at center right now. Gafford, who has otherwise been excellent finishing around the rim, isn’t physical enough to keep Looney off the glass or to fight Green down the stretch in a playoff-like atmosphere (and the time of the game when the four-time champion and former Defensive Player of the Year gets away with murder). With three minutes to go, the Mavericks came up empty on three consecutive possessions while trying to feed Gafford against Green in the paint.

And that, my friends, is how we end up with another frustrating Dončić game-winning attempt.

Bonus points:

• Moral victory number one: It was incredible to see how much Klay Thompson means to the Warriors fans, organization, and his teammates. Even better was watching him have a strong shooting game after some recent struggles. Thompson hit 6-of-12 three-pointers and finished with 22 points. If only that last one with a minute and a half left had gone in...

• Moral victory number two: It was a tough sight to see Dončić finish another game marked by a missed final shot. But before the clutch period, this game finally resembled the dominant Dončić performance we’d been waiting for. Number 77 looked spry and aggressive going to the rim and converted on his mid-range attempts much better than in prior games. If this game signals better times ahead for both Dončić and Thompson, then maybe brighter days are coming.