ORLANDO – The Mavericks can thank their offense for a dreadful start to March.
Dallas scored a season-low 87 points in Sunday’s loss to Oklahoma City and barely beat that mark Tuesday in losing 117-90 in Charlotte. Those are the Mavericks’ lowest totals since scoring 92 points against San Antonio on opening night.
Look no further than the 3-point disparity to show why the Mavericks suffered their fourth straight loss on a night when Kon Knueppel – one of the best perimeter shooters in the NBA – was limited to just one triple. They converted on three of their 22 3-point attempts, while Charlotte launched more than double that amount, and 20 went through the net.
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“They have shooters out there and they got guys who can create threes, and they shot 51 of them tonight,” Kidd said after Tuesday’s loss. “For us, the positive is we got to the free throw line 40-something times. Understand if we were trading two for threes, that’s not gonna put you in a situation to win, but again we didn’t shoot the three well.”
It’s difficult to ask one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in the NBA to flip a switch and turn into the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors, even if the Mavericks have their former sharpshooter Klay Thompson, who missed Tuesday’s game with a right adductor contusion.
The primary problem with Dallas’ recent offensive woes lies in being down several rotation players. Injuries are no surprise, but an average of 92.2 points is sitting on the bench in street clothes with Thompson, Marvin Bagley III, Cooper Flagg and Naji Marshall out, not to mention Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II.
Thompson and Irving are two of the Mavericks’ top high-volume 3-point shooters, along with Max Christie, who’s averaging a career-high 41.2% from beyond the arc. But the fourth-year guard has been in a slump since Jan. 28, when he went 0 for 5 from beyond the arc against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Since then, Christie has gone 24 of 83 from distance, which equates to 28.9%.
The Mavericks are getting good looks, probably none better than Christie’s corner heave that hit the side of the backboard in the second quarter Tuesday night. He made just one of his seven 3-point attempts. The Mavericks not only need to shoot better from the perimeter, but they also need Christie to regain his offensive rhythm.
“It’s the life of a 3-point shooter,” Kidd said. “You go through spells of hot, cold, warm, and right now we gotta get him going. He’s on a cold streak right now.”
After Sunday’s loss to Oklahoma City, Christie said his career 3-point year has forced teams to adjust, so he has to adjust in kind.
“I’ve got to find ways to shoot it in tighter spaces, quicker releases and whatnot, so that’s an adjustment,” he said. “It’s a long season and people get fatigued. Honestly, I had a little bit of fatigue, physically and mentally.”
The Mavericks, who are 63 games into the season with 19 left, will have to navigate life on the road for the majority of March while being shorthanded. Their offense won’t have a chance to improve until they get healthier.
Dallas is one game into a six-game road trip, its longest since the 2010-11 season. After that, they’ll return home for one game against the Cavaliers before hitting the road for a two-game trip in Cleveland and New Orleans.
The team will have a difficult time manufacturing offense against contenders and playoff hopefuls without its core, including Marshall, who’s missed the last two games with a finger contusion on his right hand. That affects his overall efficiency, which is at a career-high 53.1%, and his 3-point shooting, which is at 29.5%.
Marshall was upgraded to probable for Thursday’s game against the Orlando Magic. Flagg, who’s missed the last eight games with a left midfoot sprain, went through a pregame warmup Tuesday and was upgraded to questionable. The Mavericks are 4-8 without him this season.
“We need him and it shows,” P.J. Washington said Tuesday.
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Find more Mavericks coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.