Let’s talk about the healthy players for a moment.
Because, yes, there’s another injury to discuss. Two of ‘em, actually. The Dallas Mavericks’ “consecutive games without an injury” whiteboard has been once again wiped down to “zero,” though in fairness, it had already read that entering Wednesday’s game vs. the Portland Trail Blazers.
But just table that for one second, because the Mavericks — on the heels of an ugly, blowout loss to the Utah Jazz — watched their healthy, two-guard, two-superstar dynamic flourish for the first time in what feels like quite a while.
Luka Doncic (41 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists) and Kyrie Irving (29 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists) led an emphatic wire-to-wire 126-97 win vs. the Trail Blazers at American Airlines Center. Doncic left his 19-point outing against Utah far in the rearview; Irving, in the second game back from a heel injury that’d sidelined him for nearly a month, looked especially comfortable. They’d helped stake a lead so large that the two were able to rest for the entire fourth quarter.
“I feel like when we played against the Jazz, I didn’t get off to a good start,” said Irving, who scored 14 in his return game against Utah. “I just wanted to take it upon myself to galvanize the group and stay aggressive.”
Irving and the Mavericks were. And they cruised.
Aside from all the speed bumps.
Rookie center Dereck Lively II (left ankle sprain) was helped off of the court and into the locker room in the third quarter and did not return. He rolled the same ankle against the Trail Blazers on Dec. 15 and missed the Mavericks’ next four games, a stretch in which Dallas won just once.
Then, early in the fourth, forward Grant Williams also left the game with a right ankle sprain.
Now, stop us if you’ve heard this one before, but the Mavericks were already down a starter vs. Portland. Guard Dante Exum suffered a right heel contusion on New Year’s Day in Utah and missed Wednesday’s game vs. Portland. Dallas felt at full strength for about a quarter against the Jazz — in Irving’s first game back since Dec. 8 — but dropped to understaffed again soon thereafter.
It only enhanced in severity Wednesday for a Dallas team that’s already lost 82 player games to injury this season. Kidd described both ankle sprains as mild postgame.
“[They’re] getting treatment,” Kidd said. “We’ll see how they feel tomorrow.”
The game itself was in hand early. The Mavericks opened the first quarter on a 9-0 run, three of which came from a smooth transition 3-pointer from Irving that sparked a 22-point first half. Dallas led by 10 points after one and gave way to a second quarter dominated by Doncic and Irving.
Irving — with Doncic on the bench for the first four-and-a-half minutes of the second quarter — scored seven points to lead a 12-7 Mavericks run to start the period. When Irving checked out of the game one minute later, Doncic scored eight points in a three-minute stretch before Irving returned to balloon Dallas’ lead to 63-35.
And with both on the court for the final three minutes of the first half, the two combined for 13 points to give Dallas a 78-47 halftime lead.
“The two leaders set the tone early and took control of the game, on both ends, offensively and defensively,” Kidd said. “But I thought our ball movement and our player movement was probably at its best tonight.”
If anecdotes are your thing: Doncic (30 first-half points) and Irving (22 points) singlehandedly outscored the Trail Blazers in the first half. They combined for another 18 points in the third quarter to give Dallas a 102-74 lead entering the fourth. Had they been needed for the game’s final 12 minutes, Doncic and Irving could’ve tried to challenge the Trail Blazers’ 97 total points as a pair.
And if you like a plain ol’ simple statement: The two made it look easy. Their on-court cohesion looked seamless despite Irving’s time off, and maybe most importantly, each guard supplied a significant portion of Dallas’ offense while the other sat. That aspect of the duo’s presence only gains importance with each Mavericks injury.
Irving’s 29 points were his most since a 38-point outing against the Milwaukee Bucks on Nov. 18. Doncic — who made four of his seven 3-point attempts — recorded his first dunk of the season in the third quarter.
“He was flying like Mike tonight,” Kidd said.
Now, the rebuilding, nine-win Trail Blazers might not be the gold standard barometer of which a team measures its success. Portland’s 34 fouls (which led to Dallas’ 41 free throw attempts) and 21 turnovers (which aided the Mavericks’ 28 fast break points) certainly contributed to the Mavericks’ hearty lead which, at one point, reached 38 points.
The first-place Minnesota Timberwolves — who come to town Sunday after the Mavs have one more dance with Portland on Friday — might prove a stiffer test.
Speaking of which.
Wednesday’s game was the first of a seven-game American Airlines Center homestand. Consider it a necessary one after a stretch of four road contests in five games and an injury report that’s filled back up just as quickly as it returned to a manageable length.
“The last 10 days were tough, the schedule,” Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said pregame. “but everybody is going to go through it. But it’s good to be home for two weeks. Nice homestand. [Hopefully] we can get healthy, and then also to protect home.”
The neighborhood watch, for now, may be without Exum, Lively and Williams.
The good news, though, is that Irving is back.
It looked awfully good for one night.
On Twitter/X: @McFarland_Shawn
Find more Mavericks coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
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