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The Dallas Mavericks beat the Washington Wizards on Saturday night in a thriller, 125-124. The Mavericks got off to a hot start, building an 18-point lead at one point. The Wizards outplayed Dallas in the second quarter to cut the halftime deficit to only five points which would spark a second-half battle that would go until the very last possession.
Luka Doncic led the way for the Mavericks with a 31-point, 12-rebound, 20-assist triple-double. Dorian Finney-Smith continued his hot shooting by hitting 6-of-9 deep shots and ended the night with the game-winner from the corner. Russell Westbrook has been on a tear lately and showed out, leading the Wizards with a 42-point game. Here are some fun numbers from the win:
22: The Mavericks are 22-0 when leading after the first quarter
I know you must be sick of hearing this stat. Honestly, though, this is insane. To me, this stat has now moved from the “crazy-stat-that-doesn’t-mean-much” category to the now concrete, secret recipe of success for Dallas. I’m kidding, of course. The Mavericks battled back from an eight-point deficit in the fourth to pull this one out and save the stat we love.
20: Luka Doncic’s career-high assist total
According to Mavs PR, Luka Dončić has only recorded the fourth game in NBA history with 30+ points, 10+ rebounds, and 20+ assists. He joins Magic Johnson, Russell Westbrook and Oscar Robertson as the only players to do so. If you were like me, you had a feeling he might get there tonight. After the first three minutes of the game, Doncic already had four assists.
Luka Doncic just became the first player since Chris Paul on Dec. 10, 2016 to have at least 20 assists but no more than one turnover in a game.
— Ryan Mainville (@RyanMainville) May 2, 2021
Only six players have done it since 1996: John Stockton, Avery Johnson, Steve Nash, Deron Williams, Chris Paul, and now Luka Doncic.
It was a masterful night from Doncic, but Dorian Finney-Smith is the real hero...
6: Dorian Finney-Smith career-high made three-point shots
When my wife and I celebrated the birth of our son, I became a better man. When Dorian Finney-Smith celebrated the birth of his son, he became a better 3-point shooter. In the 22 games since the birth of his son, Finney-Smith is shooting 46.7% from deep. 46.7%! An unreal stat. That’s the fourth-best in the league (>120 3PA’s) since March 20 when he rejoined the team.
Here’s the postgame podcast, Mavs Moneyball After Dark. If you can’t see the embed below “More from Mavs Moneyball”, click here. And if you haven’t yet, subscribe by searching “Mavs Moneyball podcast” into your favorite podcast app.