Perhaps even worse, the Mavericks lost two more players to the injury bug. <\/p>\n
Mavericks<\/p>\n
By signing up, you agree to our\u00a0Terms of Service<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n Related<\/p>\n Cooper Flagg found Thompson for his first 3-pointer of the game, but the rookie\u2019s night came to an early end shortly<\/a> after he awkwardly rolled his left ankle in the second quarter, the same ankle he injured two nights prior.<\/p>\n After halftime, Daniel Gafford reaggravated his lingering right ankle sprain in the third quarter and was ruled out for the remainder of the game.<\/p>\n Without Flagg, the Mavericks couldn\u2019t muster enough offense to compete with a Nikola Jokic-less Nuggets, but Jamal Murray made up the difference for his team with a game-high 33 points and five assists.<\/p>\n Mavericks coach Jason Kidd did not have an update for Flagg and Gafford after the game.<\/p>\n \u201cThose are two guys we are depending on, but next guy up and the group that was out there fighting gave us a chance,\u201d Kidd said.<\/p>\n Naji Marshall scored a team-high 24 points, while Brandon Williams, who returned from a two-game absence with an illness, paced the bench with 20 points and seven rebounds.<\/p>\n The Mavericks were already without Anthony Davis<\/a>, Kyrie Irving, Dereck Lively II, Dante Exum and Max Christie, who missed Wednesday\u2019s game with an illness.<\/p>\n Even with the return of PJ Washington and Williams, the Mavericks couldn\u2019t hold off the Nuggets, who won their third straight game.<\/p>\n The 3-point line was kind to the Nuggets, but not so much for the Mavericks. Denver connected on 16 of 38 from beyond the arc, while Dallas made just 5 of 34.<\/p>\n Thompson made just two of those triples on seven attempts and finished with only eight points off the bench.<\/p>\n It appeared Thompson would reach Lillard\u2019s mark rather quickly once his number was called with 6:26 left in the first quarter. Exactly 24 seconds later, Thompson ran to the right corner. It didn\u2019t take long for Flagg to find the vet for his first triple of the night, a tightly contested make over former Mavericks guard Tim Hardaway Jr.<\/p>\n At the 2:27 mark of the first quarter, Thompson benefited from a sliver of space thanks to a quick ball screen and rose for his second attempt as soon as he caught the ball from Caleb Martin.<\/p>\n Splash. Two down. Two to go.<\/p>\n Midway through Thompson\u2019s pursuit of his latest milestone, the Mavericks\u2019 injury misfortune grew worse when Flagg went down after guarding Peyton Watson. The 19-year-old suffered a similar injury in Monday\u2019s win over the Nets, but managed to return in that game.<\/p>\n Not this time. Flagg\u2019s night was officially over after halftime.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the norm,\u201d Kidd said. \u201cThis is who we are. The character has been displayed in tough times, but we keep fighting. We always say next man up. That is a true statement because of the injuries.\u201d<\/p>\n Thompson was no longer able to take advantage of his ability to drive and attract multiple defenders. That led to fewer opportunities for clean looks.<\/p>\n Thompson had a chance to tie Lillard\u2019s mark early in the fourth quarter, but missed an open 3-pointer. He shook it off, but it was the final opportunity because he didn\u2019t play the rest of the game.<\/p>\n Four players remain ahead of Thompson on the NBA\u2019s all-time 3-pointers list: Lillard (2,804), Ray Allen (2,973), James Harden (3,291) and his former Splash Brother teammate, Stephen Curry (4,201).<\/p>\n Thompson will have a better chance of securing his place at fourth in Thursday\u2019s quick-turnaround game against the Utah Jazz.<\/p>\n![\"Denver](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/WZ66EUNG3ZE6FLI2IV6Z5HYKI4.jpg\")
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