New-look Dallas Mavericks hope to enter NBA All-Star break on high note
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Dallas Mavericks guard Max Christie celebrating after making a three-point basket during overtime of a 129-128 NBA defeat by the Sacramento Kings.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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DALLAS – Max Christie is making a strong first impression with the Dallas Mavericks, who host the Miami Heat on Feb 13 (Feb 14, Singapore time) in the final game before the National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star break for both teams.
Christie was considered a throw-in by many when the Mavericks traded star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for a package highlighted by Anthony Davis.
Five games in, however, Christie is proving to be a valuable asset.
The third-year guard is averaging 17 points on 50.9 per cent shooting since arriving in Dallas, who have won three of their past four games.
The 22-year-old made his first start for the injury-plagued Mavericks on Feb 12 and had 17 points, five rebounds and four assists in Dallas’ 111-107 win over the visiting Golden State Warriors.
Christie made two free throws with 10.4 seconds left to seal the victory.
He credits coach Jason Kidd for helping make him feel comfortable with his new team.
“Having a coach that’ll trust you like that is super important,” Christie said. “Coach Kidd is willing and trusting me enough to put me in those situations, so it means a lot to me as a player and something I want to continue to improve on.”
Christie has fit in well next to star point guard Kyrie Irving, who made a season-high seven three-pointers and scored 42 points against Golden State.
“He’s obviously a phenomenal player,” Christie said. “But the things that don’t show up on the stat sheet with his hustle and leadership for us as a team is super important, and I’ve noticed it from Day 1.”
The Mavericks faced the Warriors without Davis (left adductor strain), Daniel Gafford (right knee sprain), P.J. Washington (right ankle sprain) and Dante Exum (left Achilles tightness).
The four injured players are expected to be out again when the Mavericks face Miami, who fell to the Thunder 115-101 in Oklahoma City on Feb 12 for their third straight loss.
Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 27 points and 15 rebounds, while Tyler Herro and Davion Mitchell each added 14 points. Miami were in control for most of the game until Oklahoma City opened the fourth quarter on a 24-0 run.
“Right now, I’m going with what I saw in the first three quarters,” Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We’ve made some progress in the last 24 hours from our session (on Feb 11) night and in the shoot-around. And then we weren’t able to sustain.
“I see a lot of positives that we can build on. It’s not about moral victories. But right now, we’re trying to build this thing fast.”
Miami’s Duncan Robinson and Terry Rozier missed the game due to a stomach illness that has hit the team this week.
The Heat used their 13th different starting line-up on Feb 12, but Spoelstra indicated that new acquisition Mitchell could become a mainstay alongside Herro in the backcourt.
“We like the potential and the possibilities,” Spoelstra said. “I think we all just want to see it. Davion brings that bulldog mentality. He wants to get the ball to other guys. I think they complement each other.”
Elsewhere, Jamal Murray scored a career-high 55 points and Nikola Jokic added a triple-double as the Denver Nuggets pushed their winning streak to eight games with a 132-121 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Feb 12.
Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic provided plenty of support with 26 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists in his 25th triple-double of the season.
In Boston, Jayson Tatum scored 32 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to propel the reigning champions Celtics to a 116-103 victory over Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
The Celtics remained 5½ games behind Eastern Conference leaders the Cleveland Cavaliers, who cruised past the Raptors 131-108 in Toronto.
Meanwhile, Luka Doncic’s debut with the Los Angeles Lakers scored massive ratings for ESPN despite the game starting at 10.30pm Eastern Time and with result never really in doubt.
The network’s audience for the Feb 10 game – a 132-113 Lakers victory over the Utah Jazz – peaked at 2.55 million viewers.
To put that into context, it was up 42 per cent compared to 2024’s average NBA game on ESPN. The game averaged 2.01 million viewers, according to Nielsen.
REUTERS, AFP
