3 things we learned as the Mavericks outlast the Raptors, 110-102

In a game that was reminiscent of the team-centric win in Denver, the Mavericks prevailed after a back and forth game with Toronto that saw five Mavericks score in double digits. Each of the Mavs’ starting five (Curry, Doncic, Finney-Smith, Porzingis and Kleber) seemed to have a moment where they stepped out and either helped the team out of a rut, pushed the lead, or came up with a timely stop or rebound.

It’s a much needed victory after a tough week that featured two losses to the Knicks and should do a lot to calm the frothing storm of online Dallas fans who let their displeasure with the team’s recent performances be known across all platforms. Problems still exist, but winning tends to smooth over a lot of the rougher edges.

Prozingis had a solid showing with a 15 rebound, 20 point performance, showing some grit after a slow start shooting the ball. For Toronto a one-two punch of Fred VanVleet and Norman Powell kept them in the game, despite missing Kyle Lowry. The two Raptors combined for 50 points — nearly half of Toronto’s total.

Siakam and Anunoby made things difficult for Luka

After an absolutely stellar week containing triple doubles and highlight stepback shots, Doncic came back down to earth with a 5-14 shooting night. However, by staying aggressive and continuing to drive to the basket, he found his way to the free throw line, where he converted 15-19.

Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby are likely to be two of the stoutest defending wings Luka will see this year, so it’s nice to see him be able to affect the game even when his shot isn’t falling. He tacked on 14 rebounds and 7 assists to his Mavericks-leading 26 points.

The 3 point shooting woes continue

Despite shooting the third most threes in the league, Dallas is a mediocre 18th in three-point percentage. That showed no signs of turning around tonight as they went 9-39 from deep for 23.1 percent.

Maybe the lone bright spot in this category was Seth Curry, who went 3 of 5 from deep. It’s a step in the right direction for a player who shot over 40 percent from distance in each of the last three years he played, but is currently sitting at just 33 percent this season. A regression to the mean for Curry’s shot could be something that cements him in to a starter’s role more often, as Dallas is a team still looking for consistent scoring from player’s not names Doncic or Porzingis.

Rick earns the “adjustment king” crown

Before the season started, Rick Carlise was voted by league GMs as the coach who makes the best in-game adjustments. We saw that reputation tonight as the Mavs came out in the second half to outscore Toronto 57-42.

The Mavericks, it seems for years now, have become known for some underwhelming third quarters. They scored just 25 in the third against Toronto, but stepped up on the defensive end and held the Raptors to a paltry 17. Dallas opened up a 14 point lead in the fourth and were able to ride out a final push from Toronto that saw the lead cut to two with only two minutes left in the game.

Here’s the postgame podcast, Mavs Moneyball After Dark. If you can’t see the embed below “More from Mavs Moneyball” below, click here. And if you haven’t yet, subscribe by searching “Mavs Moneyball podcast” into your favorite podcast app.