Have you looked at the Western Conference standings lately — like, really studied them?
Once you get past the tussle for the top spot between Denver, Minnesota and Oklahoma City, there’s a group of eight teams that is only separated by eight games heading into Friday’s games. The stakes are massive, with the chance to host a first-round playoff matchup on one end of the spectrum and a postseason absence (Play-In Tournament included) on the other. By comparison, the East teams filling those eight slots have a massive gap of 16 games between them.
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The West is proving to be quite wild yet again. And the possible ramifications of all this craziness are significant.
Take the fourth-place LA Clippers, for example. They have an aging and expensive core of future Hall of Famers in Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and James Harden, with Leonard the only one under contract after this season (he signed a three-year, $152.4 million extension in January). They have an insanely wealthy owner in Steve Ballmer who is notoriously competitive, whose star-studded team has headed in the wrong direction since making a West finals appearance in 2021 and who is set to open the new $2 billion Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif., next season. So yes, in other words, there’s a bit of pressure to make a deep playoff run and uncertainty about what might happen if they don’t.
But they’re hardly alone.
The fifth-place New Orleans Pelicans need to know if this Zion Williamson–Brandon Ingram–CJ McCollum core is still the way to go for the long term, especially with Ingram facing free agency in the summer of 2025. It doesn’t help that the former All-Star suffered a left knee injury recently, but there’s optimism he’ll be back before the playoffs.
The Phoenix Suns have their own pressing issues, with new owner Mat Ishbia having gone all-in on the Devin Booker–Kevin Durant–Bradley Beal star trio only to see underwhelming (and injury-riddled) results so far in their first full season together. The list goes on, with the Sacramento Kings, Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors all trying to avoid falling short of their own lofty expectations, and the surging Houston Rockets (winners of 10 straight, one game behind Golden State) posing a serious Play-In threat.
But for the purposes of this piece, it’s the sixth-place Dallas Mavericks front and center for two reasons. For starters, I had a chance to see them up close for the first time since everything changed for the better at the trade deadline. Secondly, there’s a massive under-the-radar revelation to discuss that should change the way we look at these Mavs.
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For the sake of tracking what remains of the West playoff race, I’ve included a glance at each of the aforementioned teams’ situations and a brief breakdown of their respective schedules in the final stretch. Away we go…
Defense in Dallas?
As if Luka Dončić hadn’t caused the Kings and their fans enough pain these past few years, there he was doing it all over again Tuesday night.
The 25-year-old Mavericks star who should have been drafted by Sacramento back in 2018, when the (previous front-office regime’s) choice to go with Marvin Bagley III over him in the draft meant they missed out on a generational talent and infuriated so many of the local loyalists in the process, had 28 points, 11 rebounds and six assists in a dominant Dallas win (132-96) that came with serious postseason ramifications. He was great — especially in his 26-point first half — which is to say, he was Luka.
Ditto for Benjamin Button, er, Kyrie Irving , who scored 18 of his 25 points in the second half and finished with six assists while taking advantage of the Kings’ defensive corrections made at halftime because of Dončić. It was, in a lot of ways, just like Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison envisioned it would go when he put this duo together 14 months ago (and then doubled down by giving Irving a three-year, $126 million extension in July). If opposing defenses lock in on one of the Mavs’ all-time great scorers, then the other makes them pay. And vice versa.
But the truth about Dallas’ latest win, and this post-trade deadline surge in which the Mavericks have won nine of their last 10 games with the kind of two-way play that wasn’t supposed to be possible with this group, is that their defense was the real star of this show. Yes, you heard that right. Their defense.
This was always supposed to be the disqualifier with the Luka-Kyrie Mavs, right? They were terrific on offense but turnstiles on the other end. As such, the logic went, there was no reason to believe in their ability to truly ascend in any sort of meaningful, and collective, way.
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Yet in case you hadn’t noticed — and full disclosure, I really hadn’t until Tuesday night — they’re on a script-flipping run on that end of the floor these last few weeks. Take a quick look at the before and after data…
Before
- From Irving’s Mavericks debut on Feb. 8, 2023, through the end of the last regular season, they were 27th in defensive rating, 10th in offense and 21st in net rating (9-18 in that span). Irving missed seven games in that stretch, while Dončić missed eight.
- From the start of this season through Feb. 10, they were just 22nd in defensive rating, 12th in offense and 17th in net rating (29-23 in that span). Irving missed 22 games in that stretch, while Dončić missed eight.
After
- Since March 7, they have the league’s second-best defensive rating, fifth-best offense and are fourth in net rating (9-1 in that span). Irving has played in every game, while Dončić — who is battling left Achilles soreness — has missed one.
- Want a bigger sample size? Since Feb. 10 (14-6 in that span), they have the league’s 10th-best defense, third-best offense and fifth-best net rating. Irving has played in every game, while Dončić missed one.
This, basketball fans, is the drastically changed profile of a surprise West contender.
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Luka Dončić's Mavericks have never looked like this before
So, how have they done it? With a personnel shake-up at the trade deadline that balanced the roster in a major way.
Harrison added big men Daniel Gafford (from the Wizards) and P.J. Washington (from the Hornets), with the latter deal requiring the Mavericks to admit that the offseason addition of forward Grant Williams hadn’t worked out like they’d hoped. Williams, who was given a four-year, $54 million deal in the summer as part of a three-team sign-and-trade, was sent to Charlotte with Seth Curry and a 2027 first-round pick in the Washington deal. Add in the likes of rookie standout Dereck Lively II (taken 12th from Duke) and human pogo stick Derrick Jones Jr., and the Mavs suddenly have a supporting cast proving capable of making a Luka-Kyrie defense work.
“It’s just trying to back (Dončić and Irving) up, to clean up the dirty work,” Lively told The Athletic. “There’s a lot of times where they’re tired from doing a lot of things on the offensive end, so we’ve got to be able to make sure that we let them take a breath on the defensive end. All we need them to do is … force them into us. We’re not asking them to make the dive-on-the-floor plays. We’re not asking them to be lockdown defenders. All we’re just doing is to try to keep (their man) in the right spots so that everybody else can move around them.
“We’re really sound when it comes to our principles. If a big is switched onto a guard, we’re sending him down and every guard is sending everybody down to the bigs. The bigs are talking. The bigs are making sure we clean up the dirty work. And then we have amazing forwards. We’ve got D. Jones. We’ve got P.J. We’ve got Maxi (Kleber). And they’re always having their hands up. They’re long. They’re in there, and they’re disrupting everything. I feel like there’s a lot of trust that we’ve built together, and just being able to trust that if I help him, then I’ll help you.”
The midseason change in officiating, which came as an obvious response to the outcry over the league’s continued surge in scoring, has certainly helped the Mavericks’ cause too. Fewer whistles mean more opportunity to play defense. And as Mavericks coach Jason Kidd explained, his players have chosen to take full advantage of that unexpected chance.
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“Everybody’s playing for one another — on both ends,” Kidd said. “And sometimes in the season, as much as coaches would like our defense to be perfect in training camp, it sometimes takes a little time. But there’s no better time to play defense than in March, when you’re playing for something. And then again, our offense, we believe, is one of the best in the league with our two leaders, with Luka and Ky. So we lean on those two guys to be the quarterbacks, and they trust their teammates when they let go of the ball.”
If the Mavs can make legitimate noise in the postseason, it would be quite the turnaround from the debacle in Dallas a year ago. One year after falling to the Warriors in the West finals, they finished 38-44 and 11th in the West, and thereby missed the playoffs for just the fifth time in the franchise’s previous 23 years.
The chatter about Dončić and whether he might look elsewhere eventually had predictably started among rival teams, and the controversial choice to make Irving his chosen co-star did little to quiet that noise. If they had continued down that track, pressure would inevitably build on Kidd as well. But make no mistake, this new look is the kind of thing that could change the Mavs’ narrative.
Dončić, who is in the thick of the MVP race yet again, is leading a team that has been dominant of late. Irving, who gives Dončić much-needed balance on the offensive end, is playing beautiful basketball. And Kidd, league sources say, is hopeful that he can secure an extension this summer. (He is signed through next season.)
As it relates to these next few weeks and (potentially) months, Dončić’s health and durability is a bit of a concern. He was listed as questionable for the Tuesday game against the Kings and was visibly pained by the left leg injury at times. Afterward, Dončić received massage treatment inside the team’s locker room for nearly an hour — if not more. It will be interesting to see how he looks in the second game against the Kings — after two full days of rest — Friday night.
From Dončić on down, though, there’s a lot to like about how the Mavs are looking these days. And the vibes, as evidenced by a comical postgame back-and-forth late Tuesday night, appear positive behind the scenes too.
Jones was the victim of a Dončić prank during the win over the Kings, when he fell for the age-old made-you-look bit that was captured on camera and shared by the team’s social media accounts. As our Mavericks beat writer, Tim Cato, detailed in his Thursday piece, Jones lightheartedly complained in the locker room while bemoaning it all as if Dončić was his annoying older brother.
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“Come on, Luka,” he had said while throwing his hands up. “It made SportsCenter!”
Irving, sitting at his locker and watching this all unfold, looked Jones’s way and quietly spoke the truth about the sort of high-profile attention they’re starting to earn these days.
“Get used to it,” he said with a smile.
Truth be told, he might be right.
The final stretch (in current standings order)
Programming note: Teams in the Nos. 7-10 spots are in the Play-In Tournament, with the No. 7 and No. 8 teams needing to win once to advance to the first round and No. 9 and No. 10 having to win twice.
Clippers (45-27; fourth in the West)
Games remaining: 10 (six home, four road)
Games vs. winning teams: Seven
Schedule breakdown: Just when you thought these Clippers were title contenders, back when they were 34-15 on Feb. 5, they’ve gone 11-12 since while playing so poorly that coach Tyronn Lue even deemed them “soft.” They’ll need to toughen up for this final stretch of the regular season, as it includes road games against a gritty Orlando group (Friday) and the Kings (Tuesday) before they host the defending champion Nuggets (Thursday) and Cleveland (April 7). Three of their last four games come against their key West neighbors in the standings (a road-home back-to-back against the Suns on April 9 and 10, respectively, and a regular-season finale at home April 14 against Houston).
Pelicans (45-28; fifth)
Games remaining: Nine (Five home, four road)
Games vs. winning teams: Seven
Schedule breakdown: The Pelicans, who are just a half game away from first-round-home-court-advantage territory and hold the tiebreaker against the Clippers, have quietly become a very credible contender. The turn, which has involved the best extended version of Zion Williamson we’ve ever seen in his punishing, playmaking role, began with a win Jan. 31 at Houston. Since then, New Orleans has gone 19-7 while posting the league’s third-best net rating, second-best defensive rating and 10th-best offensive rating. More tough tests await, with four games left on this homestand (Boston, Phoenix, Orlando and San Antonio) followed by a four-game road trip (Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento, Golden State) and a regular-season home finale at the Lakers.
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X's and Mo's: Analyzing Zion Williamson's defensive turnaround for the Pelicans
Mavericks (43-29; sixth)
Games remaining: 10 (four home, six road)
Games vs. winning teams: Seven
Schedule breakdown: In the next 10 days, the Mavs have five games (out of six) against West teams that are jockeying with them for (non-Play-In) position. They play Friday night at Sacramento (with the head-to-head tiebreaker on the line), then play at Houston on Sunday and at Golden State on Tuesday before a home game against Atlanta on April 4. Home games against Golden State (April 5) and Houston (April 7) follow.
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Suns (43-30; seventh)
Games remaining: Nine (Four home, five road)
Games vs. winning teams: Nine (yes, all nine)
Schedule breakdown: When the Suns somehow lost to the Victor Wembanyama-less Spurs on Monday, it was even more painful than advertised because of the schedule yet to come. San Antonio, you see, would be the last team with a losing record that they’d face this season. It’s absolutely brutal from here.
They’re at OKC on Friday night, with two games against New Orleans (Monday and April 7), Minnesota (Friday and April 14) and the Clippers to come (April 9 and 10). Cleveland (at home on April 3) and Sacramento (on the road on April 12) are the others. Yikes.
Kings (42-30; eighth)
Games remaining: 10 (Six home, four road)
Games vs. winning teams: Seven
Schedule breakdown: This rematch against Dallas is massive, as another loss would not only give the Mavs the tiebreaker but also put the Kings two games away from the sixth spot they covet. But they have no shortage of tough challenges from there: home against the Clippers on Tuesday, followed by a brutal road back-to-back in New York and Boston on Thursday and (next) Friday. Three of their final four are no easy task, either, with games against Oklahoma City (April 9 at OKC), New Orleans (home on April 11) and Phoenix (home on April 12).
Lakers (41-32; ninth)
Games remaining: Nine (Three home, six road)
Games vs. winning teams: Five
Schedule breakdown: Even with this five-game winning streak, it’s highly unlikely the Lakers can get out of the Play-In seeds. The 7-8 realm is still within reach, though. They have the tiebreaker over Phoenix because of their season series (3-1 Lakers), but don’t have it against Sacramento (the Kings won all four matchups).
As for the schedule, they have four games left on this current six-game trip (Indiana, Brooklyn, Toronto, Washington) before a tough three-game homestand follows (Cleveland, Minnesota, Golden State). They finish on the road against Memphis and New Orleans.
Warriors (38-34; 10th)
Games remaining: 10 (Four home, six road)
Games vs. winning teams: Five
Schedule breakdown: Draymond Green might not “give a damn about the Rockets,” as he insisted recently, but he definitely should considering how close this race has become. What’s more — and here comes the broken record part of the program — the volatile veteran, who was ejected early from Wednesday’s win in Orlando, simply must find a way to keep his composure from here on out.
Especially considering the gravity of their situation.
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All throughout these later stages of their dying dynasty, the question has loomed about when — or if — owner Joe Lacob might finally be compelled to break up their celebrated core. The prospect of missing the postseason entirely, it’s safe to say, would give him plenty to think about when it comes to how to handle their road ahead. But if they can survive this stretch, including that crucial seven-game span that includes five games against key West opponents (Dallas twice, Houston, the Lakers and New Orleans) from Tuesday to April 12, then the slightest of hope remains that they can do something meaningful in the postseason.
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Draymond Green's ejection put Stephen Curry's burden on full display
Rockets (37-35; 11th)
Games remaining: 10 (Four home, six road)
Winning teams: Seven
Schedule breakdown: Maybe Jalen Green is the star player the Rockets were looking for after all.
As we reported in late January, Houston was open to the notion of trading its 22-year-old talent if there was a more established star coming its way in return (the Brooklyn Nets’ Mikal Bridges, more specifically). But in this remarkable run in which the Rockets have won 12 of their past 13 games (including the last 10), Green has been nothing short of spectacular (28.5 points, including 42.9 percent from 3-point range on 9.7 attempts, 6.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.2 steals per game).
In that 13-game span, Houston is third in net rating, second in offensive rating and fifth in defensive rating. If they can sneak in here and get past the Play-In stage, first-year coach Ime Udoka and his Rockets will have serious spoiler potential in a first-round matchup. Add in that most of this stretch has come without third-year center Alperen Şengün, whose breakout season ended with a Grade 3 right ankle sprain suffered on March 10, and it’s clear there’s something brewing in Houston again.
These last two weeks will be fascinating to watch, as the Rockets have four games against their middle-of-the-West counterparts (Dallas twice, Golden State and the Clippers) as well as tough matchups against Minnesota, Miami and Orlando.
(Photo of Kyrie Irving and Luka Dončić: Ron Jenkins / Getty Images)
