‘Revenge game’ didn’t live up to hype

By David Mullen

Los Angeles Lakers 40-year-old guard/forward LeBron James had 27 points and recently acquired guard Luka Doncic had his first triple-double for his new team as the Lakers — winners of 15 of the last 19 games — beat an injured Dallas Mavericks team 107-99 at Crypto.com Arena on February 25. 

Mavericks’ guards Kyrie Irving has 35 points, and Kyle Thompson had 22 in a losing effort. “I’m not even looking at this game as a ‘revenge game.’ I’m actually looking forward to it from a sense that I get to see old teammates, old colleagues, old coaches. I’m looking forward to just enjoying that game. I want to win, obviously. But I’m not going in there with any bad blood or any intention of trying to drop 40 on them. I’m just going in there to try to win the game, play my game and let the game come to me.”

The opening paragraph could be the lede from a wire service story about a weekday regular season game between two Western Conference rivals. 

And the second paragraph quote — as told to Andscape’s NBA writer Marc J. Spears prior to the “revenge game” — comes not from Doncic but from new Mavericks guard Max Christie, the “other” player Dallas gained when they traded Doncic to the Lakers for All-Star forward Anthony Davis, Christie and a future draft pick on February 2. 

In the most hyped regular season game in recent memory, dubbed the “Luka revenge game,” the Mavericks played valiantly without frontline stalwarts Davis, Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II. The game will be remembered more for the Mavericks’ vigilance than Doncic’s vengeance. 

While entertaining, the game didn’t live up to the hype.

In a typical game without the soap opera build-up, more attention would be focused on Mavs forward P.J. Washington’s 0-point night shooting 0-9 from the field in 34 minutes than the 81st triple-double in Luka’s more than six NBA seasons. Washington averages more than 14 points per game. The lack of a front-line presence gave the Lakers a 10-rebound advantage at game’s end. But the outcome remained in doubt until James took a lob pass from Doncic and scored with 32 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to seal the Lakers victory.     

Doncic gave mourning Mavericks fans a screenshot of what they are missing. Doncic finished with 19 points, 15 rebounds and 12 assists. But he had an off-night shooting, going 6-17 from the field and 1-7 from three-point range. He was also given a first quarter technical foul and was seen taunting the Mavericks bench during the game. That’s Luka in a nutshell. He has the game of a basketball savant while at times displaying the decorum of a spoiled teenager. 

While the game may not have lived up to what many had hoped would be Doncic sticking it to the Mavericks for trading a 25-year-old, once in a generation basketball talent or the Mavericks proving to Dallas fans and the rest of the NBA world that the trade was shrewd, the contest proved to be just 48 minutes of NBA basketball. 

A few takeaways and the season heads for the home stretch include:

The Western Conference is loaded. The six teams with the best regular season records are guaranteed playoffs spots. The next four (teams 7 through 10) must compete in a wild card playoffs to decide the final two spots. The Lakers are fourth, 10.5 games behind the surging Oklahoma City Thunder, but only two games behind the second place Memphis Grizzlies. The road to the NBA Finals goes through Oklahoma City, where the Thunder are 25-4 at home.

The Lakers are better with Luka. Adding Doncic for Davis, the Lakers have a multi-dimensional player that often requires a double-team defense. In addition to the timeless James, LA has guard Austin Reaves, averaging 19.2 points per game, creating a three-headed outside shooting monster that will challenge defenses everywhere. As they continue to play together, the offense will get even better.          

The Kyrie Irving trade proved brilliant. Two years ago, the Mavericks traded Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorien Finney Smith and three draft picks including a 2009 first rounder for Irving, who was thought to be a team cancer by NBA insiders. Not only is Irving a great player, but he has also become a team leader and the most reliable player on the squad. 

Dinwiddie is back with the Mavs and Finney-Smith is now a Laker.

Dallas will make the playoffs. In fact, the Western Conference playoffs are all but set. The Mavericks have 23 games remaining and the Lakers have 26. The 11th place Phoenix Suns are currently 2.5 games behind the 10th place Sacramento Kings, are in a 2-8 tailspin and fading fast. No team behind the Suns can make the playoffs.

The Mavericks are in ninth place at 31-28 but are only one game from a guaranteed sixth playoff spot. Despite injuries, the Mavericks play excellent team defense. They have a number of winnable games remaining on the schedule, with or without their big men. They are well coached by Jason Kidd and play hard every night. When healthy, the Mavericks are a force that no team will want to face in the playoffs. 

On Wednesday, April 9, the Lakers come to Dallas to face the Mavericks in a game that should have major playoff implications. As the two teams will vie for favorable seeding, that will be the real “Revenge Game.”