Player Grades: Looking back as the shorthanded Mavericks get whupped by the league-leading Cavaliers 122-134

Dallas could not stop the bleeding and lost their fourth straight against an exemplary Cleveland team in a game where the Mavericks missed Kyrie Irving who was a late scratch due to illness.

4 straight losses. The Dallas Mavericks can’t stop the bleeding at the moment, losing to the NBA-best Cleveland Cavaliers 134-122 in a game that wasn’t as close as the final scoreline indicates. It’s only the second time this season that the Mavericks have a losing streak going, but this one doesn’t look to have an end in sight considering the current state of the roster, what with the constant injuries and the viral plague they seem to have contracted.

This time it was Kyrie Irving who was out with an illness. The Mavericks cannot seem to shake this bug that’s going around and from Quentin Grimes’ postgame comments, it seems quite serious.

Apart from Kyrie, Naji Marshall served the last of his 4 game suspension. Luka Doncic (Calf Strain) & Dante Exum (Broken Hand) remained out.

Considering all of that, the Mavericks played well enough – scoring 122 points without Luka or Kyrie is respectable. The Cavaliers though, are on another planet. They went on an extended run of 20-0 to end the 1^st quarter and begin the 2^nd and that was the game. As Josh pointed out in the Podcast, it almost felt like the Mavericks lost the game on the defensive end rather than the offensive one.

Let’s look at how the Mavericks graded out in a scheduled loss against the Cavs:

Quentin Grimes: A+

26 Points/2 Rebounds/6 Assists/1 Steal

If there was any positive to take away from this game, it would be the play of Quentin Grimes. On a night where his 3pt shot wasn’t falling – he was 1/5 from beyond the arc – QG played with force, driving to the rim and drawing fouls. He was 7/7 from the FT line and was probably the only reason the game was as close as it was. His playmaking (6 Assists!) was a bonus and it’s been refreshing to see him show off different aspects to his game in extended minutes.

Spencer Dinwiddie: D

2 Points/4 Rebounds/5 Assists

Is it time to have a conversation about Spencer Dinwiddie? He’s playing extended minutes with Luka & Kyire missing so much time and in reality, should be considered an end-of-bench rotation piece, but his play over the last few games has been horrendous. 2pts on 1/7 shooting in 24 minutes isn’t going to cut it. His playmaking is on point and he generally doesn’t turn the ball over, but he is a ball-stopper on the offensive side and throws up some wild shots. It would be great if that was offset by great defensive play, but Dinwiddie was hopeless on that end too ending the game with a Plus-Minus of -16.

Klay Thompson: C

16 Points/3 Rebounds/3 Assist/1 Steal

Klay was… Meh. He forced up multiple bad shots and wasn’t close on a lot of his 3pt attempts. He got going to end the 2^nd quarter and was leading the Mavericks in scoring for the 1^st half with 16pts but didn’t do much at all in the 2^nd half. On the defensive end, he struggled after getting matched up against the bigger Mobley on switches and was caught ball-watching a couple of times on backdoor cuts. It’s probably too much to expect from him at this stage of his career, but the Mavericks need him to be perfect when they’re shorthanded like they are now, and Klay was far from that.

P.J. Washington: C-

15 Points/7 Rebounds/1 Assist/1 Block

For the Mavericks to remain afloat in Luka’s absence, they need guys like PJ, Naji & Spencer to step up and share the load. Naji has been missing through his suspension, but it’s safe to say that PJ has not stepped up so far. He was off all night and has been since that incendiary 1^st quarter against the Kings. He finished the night 6/18 from the field and 1/7 from the 3pt line was a -15 overall. That isn’t going to cut it. PJ is probably the 3^rd most important Maverick right now. It’s time he starts playing like it.

Dereck Lively: C-

7 Points/11 Rebounds/3 Assists/1 Block

Lively had another down game in what’s been an up-and-down season for him. He tends to struggle against physical big men and while Jarrett Allen didn’t have a crazy statistical game tonight like he did last season, Lively did struggle to contain the Cavs’ other big man – Evan Mobley. Lively was punished repeatedly on switches and looked a bit lost on the defensive end. He did show some nice touch around the basket on the offensive end with a couple of soft hook shots though. Baby steps. Lively is still 20yrs old and a 2^nd year player. Things will progress in time.

Daniel Gafford: B-

12 Points/8 Rebounds/2 Assists/1 Block

Gafford rebounded from a difficult stretch of games, where he’s been objectively terrible. He was probably the better of the 2 Dallas Centers in this game and did put Jarrett Allen in some difficult possessions with his physical play. He showed out on the offensive glass with 5 ORebs, though that also may be explained by Allen sitting with foul trouble and the Cavs experimenting with a super small lineup for large portions of the 2^nd half.

Brandon Williams: B+

13 Points/3 Rebounds/2 Assists

Williams was the other positive from this game. Apart from Grimes, Williams was the only other Maverick who played meaningful minutes and ended with a positive +/-. He looked solid handling the ball and initiating the offense and kept the ball moving. He wasn’t afraid to shoot it going 4/9 from the field and 2/4 from the 3pt line. Getting extended minutes for end-of-bench players might be the only major positive from this injury fiasco and while Brandon Williams might not amount to anything in a Mavericks uniform, we know at least what he’s capable of when called upon.

Jaden Hardy: C-

17 Points/3 Rebounds/3 Assists/1 Block

It might be harsh to give Hardy this low a grade considering he was 2^nd on the Mavericks in scoring for the game, but it’s probably fair. Hardy did most of his scoring in the 4^th quarter when it was basically garbage time and was generally quite bad. His irrational confidence is probably his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. He thinks he can outplay everyone and ends up getting his butt handed to him in the process. He might have scored a bit, but was terrible on the defensive end, ending with 5 fouls and a team-low -19 for the night. It’s probably safe to say that Jaden Hardy is not going to be a Dallas Maverick for too long, all things considered.

Maxi Kleber: C

2 Points/4 Rebounds/1 Assist

Maxi… was Maxi. He got up 4 shots in the game missing all of his 3pt attempts and making his only 2-pointer on a drive to the basket. He had some nice drive and kicks and generally kept the ball moving, but ultimately, he was a net negative. Evan Mobley abused his and PJ’s defense for most of the game. Maxi is going to get minutes as the backup 4 considering that O-Max is not ready for serious playing time, but it’s not because he’s good at anything. It’s mostly only because he’s a body.

O-Max Prosper, Jazian Gortman, Dwight Powell, Markief Morris: B-

12 Points/8 Rebounds/3 Assists/1 Steal

It’s probably not worth handing out grades for these guys considering they played about 4mins of garbage time, but they were a positive (Really grasping at straws here). O-Max did O-Max things and looked like an uncoordinated giraffe on a sugar rush. Keef got up his shots whenever he could. Gortman & Powell… were there. They outscored the Cavaliers’ end-of-bench guys and ensured that the scoreline looked respectable. Positives!