Dirk Nowitzki (above, left) passed Larry Bird for 25th on the NBA's all-time scoring list and the Mavericks took care of a retooled Magic squad for their 16th win in the last 17 contests. (AP Photo/Stephen M. Dowell - Orlando Sentinel)Forget being on a streak, right now it's tough for any NBA team to look at the schedule and see the humming Dallas Mavericks (23-5) on the horizon.
Dallas took time out Tuesday evening from bustin' streaks to take care of a struggling Orlando Magic (16-12) team, who now have lost eight of their last nine contests. The Mavericks persevered through a third consecutive game with at least 19 points and 20 rebounds from Magic center Dwight Howard with (surprise) some smothering defense and a well-rounded offensive attack.
Caron Butler led six Mavs in double figures with 20 points, and Dallas shot an even 50 percent for the game (including an outstanding 46.2 percent from behind the arc) while holding the Magic to only 44 percent shooting.
"We feel like we're one of the best teams in the league, if not the best right now," Butler said. "We're playing great basketball, so we want to capitalize on every opportunity."
Orlando's newcomers, acquired in a couple of blockbuster trades earlier in the week, failed to make a positive impact on the contest.
Jason Richardson (10 points on 4 of 13 shooting), Hedo Turkoglu (nine points, 2 of 11 shooting) and Gilbert Arenas (two points, 1 of 6 shooting) combined to make only 7 of 30 attempts from the field (23 percent) and, aside from a couple of 3's late for Richardson, were complete non-factors. Turkoglu even bungled a transition dunk in the fourth quarter, as the 6'10 forward was rejected by the front of the rim.
Since Saturday's trades, Orlando's lost each of the last two contests.
"None of those guys are shooting the ball very well right now," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. "I don't know if it's being in a new situation or putting too much pressure on themselves. All three of them are struggling to shoot the ball."
Howard led Orlando with 26 points and a monster 23 rebounds, while J.J. Reddick (21 points) and Jameer Nelson (19) did the rest of the heavy-lifting for the Magic.
"We still know who they had," Nowitzki said of a Magic team that just overhauled its roster. "Dwight [Howard] is their focus. They have a bunch of shooters, Jameer [Nelson] and all those guys."
In what seems like a recurring theme for the Magic, Van Gundy went away from Howard for the last half of the final quarter; with Orlando opting instead to launch eight 3's in the final 4:18 of the contest. Howard had just one shot attempt in the final six minutes: a tip-in attempt after a Turkoglu missed lay-in.
"It can't get any worse," Howard said of his team's slide.
Dallas has now beaten each of the upper-echelon teams in the NBA aside from the Los Angeles Lakers, who don't come to town until Jan. 19. The Mavericks seem to be playing the best basketball in the NBA right now, on both ends of the court.
Nowitzki Passes Larry Legend
Dirk Nowitzki came into Tuesday's contest only 11 points away from passing Larry Bird for 25th on the NBA's all-time scoring list. After dropping eight points in the first quarter, Nowitzki went scoreless for two quarters before coming alive to start the fourth.
Fittingly, Nowitzki drained a trailing, transition 3-pointer - a staple of Nowitzki's illustrious 13-year career - nearly a minute into the fourth quarter to pass Bird and move into the top-25 of all-time NBA scorers. Dirk didn't shoot all that well on the night (4-13), but had a well-rounded outing with 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Nowitzki now has 21,798 points in his career and is only 16 points from passing Gary Payton for 24th all-time.
What's Next:
Dallas has a robust five days off for a nice Christmas break before picking back up Monday night in Oklahoma City against the Thunder. OKC is 20-9 on the season (10-5 at home), good for fourth in the Western Conference, led by superstar Kevin Durant - the NBA's leading scorer at 27.6 per contest. The Thunder have won six of their last seven games, but lost at home to Dallas, 111-103, in the only meeting between the two teams this season.
Tip-off is scheduled 7:30 p.m. central time.
News and Notes:
- Yet another road win puts Dallas at 10-1 on the season, which is the best road record in basketball.
- So much for avoiding Superman's paint: Tyson Chandler was 7 of 7 from the floor against Dwight Howard and the Magic with six emphatic dunks, three straight at one points, as he finished the night with 16 points four boards and a steal.
(Portions of this article were taken from The Associated Press)
No comments:
Post a Comment