Here is what you need to know before the Lakers finish their five-game road trip in Dallas.
1)
The Lakers have recently been scoring less, which has actually been good for the offense. In its first six games, L.A. was averaging 104.3 points, but shooting just 40.3 percent from the field. While they have scored only 93.5 points in their last two games, the Lakers are shooting a much better percentage (46.8). However, their number of free throw attempts have also taken a dive from 31.8 to 22.0 in these spans.
2)
After spending all of last season and most of the previous one out of the NBA, few would have predicted that Metta World Peace would be leading the entire league in 3-point percentage (66.7) in 2015. Though it is still extremely early in the year, the 36-year-old World Peace has been burning from beyond the arc with an 8-of-12 clip.
Metta World Peace 3-Point Shot Chart
3)
More so than most other teams, the first quarter has set the tone for Dallas, which is 3-0 when leading after one period but just 1-4 when trailing.
4)
Dallas ranks last in the league in blocks (2.9). In fact, Roy Hibbert — who places fifth among individual players — nearly averages as many on his own (2.8) as the Mavericks do as a team.
5)
The Mavericks have been successful when posting up, hitting 56.9 percent on such attempts, which is second in the league. However, they have also been bullied by their opponents flipping it around and posting up on them, as they are allowing league-highs in post-up scoring (12.0) and percentage (54.2).
6)
The last time Dallas faced the Lakers, Rick Carlisle became the winningest coach in franchise history. With the Mavericks beating L.A. 103-93 on Nov. 1, Carlisle earned his 340th victory for Dallas, moving past Don Nelson for first all-time.
7)
Dirk Nowitzki may be in his 18th season, but the 37-year-old is still among the league’s most precise shooters. He leads the NBA in catch-and-shoot scoring (8.6 ppg) and percentage (57.4), while ranking in the top 10 for post-ups (second; 56.7 percent) and 3-pointers (seventh; 51.6).
8)
After bouncing between the D-League and NBA last year, center Dwight Powell has become a key member of Dallas’ bench, averaging 10.8 points and 7.5 rebounds in 21.1 minutes per game. Powell has been particularly effective in pick-and-rolls, as he is shooting the league’s third-best percentage (56.5) in such situations.
9)
Deron Williams has been the league’s only qualified free throw shooter with a perfect clip, knocking down all 14 of his tries at the foul line. Meanwhile, his backup, Devin Harris, has been through a much rougher stretch, as his 57.7 percent mark at the charity stripe is last among non-bigs.
10)
Julius Randle, who missed all but one game of his rookie season (broken leg), is making his first trip to his hometown of Dallas as a Laker. The 20-year-old already had his best game thus far against the Mavericks with 22 points and 15 rebounds on Nov. 1.