Beaten by 28 points at the start of the weekend, the Nuggets faced the Mavericks again in Dallas on Sunday evening with, this time, a completely different outcome.
Despite the absence of its major players (Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon), Denver managed to win on the wire (98-97) thanks to a victorious shot from Michael Porter Jr. at 3-points, but above all to a poor performance by the Mavs, like this last shot missed by Luka Doncic on the siren.
Disturbed by an umpire decision that replayed the last two seconds of the first half early in the second, with an unlikely 3-pointer from Vlatko Cancar for the Nuggets, the Mavs thwarted the entire evening, like Tim Hardaway Jr. at 0/9 on shots or even Spencer Dinwiddie at 5/15.
Opposite, Denver bravely played its luck, placing its destiny in the hands of Bones Hyland (29 points, 6 assists), author of his best career game for the occasion.
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
— Two seconds that change everything? It’s a rare thing but Nuggets and Mavs had to replay the last two seconds of the first half at the start of the second, after the refereeing trio decided to cancel a 3-pointer at the buzzer from Luka Doncic which had set foot outside before returning his shot from distance. “It’s an important differential but I don’t think it decided the fate of the match”explained Doncic afterwards. “I don’t think I was off the field. I’ve seen videos and it doesn’t even look like I’m hitting the line, my heel was up. » And it was his compatriot, Vlatko Cancar who took advantage by scoring an incredible shot from midfield. With a +7 in their favor, the Mavs finally left in the third quarter with a meager advantage of 1 point… “The coach told me he wanted me to shoot. My eyes lit up, I was ready to shoot! », reacted Cancar.
— Mavs across. Luka Doncic could go and rail against the referees, after Cancar’s shot at the start of the 2nd half or his own failure at the last second of the match, he and the Mavs clearly did not deserve this victory. Finishing 6/10 in shots, and 12/21 as a team, Luka Doncic and the Mavs could only blame themselves after this frustrating setback. Dominated in rebounds (44 to 36) and in engagement in general, the Mavs simply missed out last night…
TOPS/FLOPS
✅ Bones Hyland. He’s the kind of player you shouldn’t promise. Without Murray at the back, Hyland took the opportunity to post a career-best 29 points and 6 assists. At 10/21 on shots including 3/8 from behind the arc, Hyland provided the offensive strike force that Denver badly needed.
✅ DeAndre Jordan. Often mocked, rightly, for his very erratic defensive involvement, the veteran pivot ensured perfectly in the racket last night. He dominated in head and shoulders rebounds with 17 rebounds (including 15 on defense), his season high, plus 8 points for 24 of evaluation.
✅ Josh Green. Just like Hyland opposite, Josh Green had his best career performance last night, up to 23 points in 30 minutes off the bench. As elusive as ever, the Australian back was one of the few Mavs to perform, with an excellent 8/9 on shots including 6/7 from 3-pointers.
⛔ Spencer Dinwiddie. With 11 points and 8 assists in total, Dinwiddie seemed to limit the damage but the veteran fullback did not weigh on the game, finishing at a poor 5/15 on shots including 1/8 from 3-pointers, in line of his penultimate match against Houston, he finished at 3/18 on shots… It must be said that he dislocated his shoulder…
THE FOLLOWING
Dallas (9-7) : beginning of a “road trip” of three games in the East, in Boston on Wednesday.
Denver (10-6) : reception of the Pistons on Tuesday.
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