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The Mavericks have had unfortunate injury luck for too long.
And their record this season reflects that bum luck.
But look only as far as Tuesday night’s opponent to see how even a catastrophic injury doesn’t have to mean that all is lost.
The Boston Celtics lost Jayson Tatum, the six-time All-Star who turns 28 a month from Tuesday, on May 25 to a ruptured Achilles. He’s been out all season, although reports indicate there is a chance he could return late this season.
And there may be good reason for him to do so.
The Celtics have won seven of their last 10 games, are 31-18 overall and tied for second in the Eastern Conference with New York. They have survived with Jaylen Brown stepping into the 1A star role and by making shrewd moves for players like Anfernee Simons (acquired in the Jrue Holiday trade) and Jordan Walsh, whom the Celtics acquired on draft night, 2023 from Sacramento and who has developed into a solid bench player in his third season.
And, of course, they have some reliable holdovers from the 2024 championship team that beat the Mavericks in the Finals – Payton Pritchard, Sam Hauser and Derrick White, to name a few.
But think about the players who were on the 2024 champions and now are elsewhere: Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and Luke Kornet, not to mention Tatum’s absence.
Does it help that the Celtics are in the Eastern Conference? Perhaps. On paper, there appear to be fewer top-tier teams in the East than there are in the West.
But this was a team that started 0-3 and even when they were 8-8 just before Thanksgiving, it was whispered around the league that the Celtics would take their chances in the draft lottery, then come back with a loaded team next season when Tatum returns to health.
Since then, they have been as good as any team in the East.
“I would say we got here faster than I thought we would. I thought we would kind of take little baby steps along the way,” Brown said recently. “Sometimes early success can be a detriment. I want us to keep our edge.”
The Celtics are coming off a pair of home wins over Sacramento on Friday and Milwaukee on Sunday. And that’s part of their success – they have beaten teams they are supposed to beat. They are 18-7 against sub-.500 teams.
And it’s worth noting that they are 9-6 against the Western Conference.
Their ability to survive and even prosper without Tatum is a great lesson for the Mavericks. Keeping the ship afloat without Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving can happen.
And it’s never too late. The Mavericks are 3 ½ games out of the final spot for the play-in tournament. But with 33 games left, there is time. And with the possibility that both Davis and Irving could return before the season ends, just getting to the postseason any way possible would allow the Mavericks and their fans to dream big.
Here’s what to watch for when the Mavericks and Celtics get together Tuesday:
- Injury update: In addition to the four mainstays on the injury report (Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, Dereck Lively II and Dante Exum, all out), the Mavericks also will be without P.J. Washington, who is going through concussion protocol.
- It’s a quick Texas two-step for the Celtics, who will be in Houston on Wednesday to finish this trip.
- Brown is rising in the MVP conversation, averaging 29.4 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.8 assists. The Celtics’ surprising success isn’t hurting, either. But he’s got lots of help from White (17.2 points), Pritchard (16.8 points) and Simons (14.2 points while coming exclusively off the bench.
- If you’re going to slow down the Celtics’ offense, you have to guard the three-point line. They are second in the league in attempts and made three-pointers. They are ninth in three-point percentage at .367.
- The Celtics also are not bankrupt on the defensive end, where they have the 11th-best overall rating in the NBA. Opponents are scoring just 109.1 points per game, second-lowest total in the league.
- The Mavericks have lost four in a row and this will continue a particularly rugged part of the schedule. They lost a heartbreaker in Houston on Saturday and now have two home games against the Celtics and San Antonio Spurs on Thursday. Then Saturday’s game at San Antonio begins a six game trip, of sorts – three road games before the All-Star break and three roadies after.
Boston Celtics (31-18) vs. Dallas Mavericks (19-30)
WHEN: Tuesday, 7 p.m.
WHERE: American Airlines Center
TICKETS: Mavs.com
TV: KFAA-29, MavsTV Stream, NBC, Peacock
RADIO: KEGL 97.1 FM The Eagle; 99.1 FM Zona MX (Spanish)
FAN ACTIVATIONS: Pop-Up Restaurant Concession Collaboration – Loro @ Modelo Gold Lion Bar
X: @ESefko