Both teams will be looking to end winless streaks that have hurt their playoff chances as the Miami Heat welcome the Dallas Mavericks to Miami.
Latest news on Luka Doncic and Jimmy Butler
Wednesday, the Miami Heat lost to the New York Knicks. This was their third loss in a row.
Jimmy Butler scored 12 points (5-10 FG, 2-2 FT) and grabbed three rebounds and passed the ball six times in the last 35 minutes of the Knicks’ loss.
Butler’s return to the game wasn’t marked by inefficiency, but by the fact that he hadn’t taken a shot or tried to make a free throw since February 2.
Before Wednesday, he had scored in double figures in 22 straight games. His season averages of 24.8 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 1.8 steals plus blocks suggest that he will have better nights as the regular season winds down.
The Dallas Mavericks (37-40) had offensive problems on Wednesday, especially in a 17-point fourth quarter that ended their 116-108 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.
Kyrie Irving scored 23 points, and Luka Doncic scored 24. Jason Kidd, the head coach of Dallas, told reporters after the game that his team is still getting used to having two All-Stars in the backcourt.
“That’s something we got to figure out on the run,” Kidd said.
“Luka’s dominated the first quarter. We’re trying not to affect that. At the same time, what we’ve found out with (Irving) is that (Irving) is not always about scoring. He can set a screen and get a teammate a shot and we’re trying to lean into that a little more, use him as a screener to create easy looks for other guys.”
Doncic keeps getting the Mavericks closer and closer to the playoffs. Since coming back from a thigh strain, he has averaged 30.6, 9.4, 9.2, and 3.8 three-pointers in his last five games.
Dallas’ recent losing skid has put it far behind Oklahoma City in the postseason chase. Can the Mavericks win their last five games of the regular season and make a push for the playoffs?
Dallas is now 11th in the West, one game behind Oklahoma City for the last play-in spot in the West before the Thunder play in Indiana on Friday. Before Friday’s game between Utah and Boston, the Mavericks were just a half-game ahead of the Jazz, who were in 12th place.
Injury Report Mavericks
- Frank Ntilikina (Knee) – Questionable
Injury Report Heat
- Bam Adebayo (Hip) – Questionable
- Kyle Lowry (Rest) – Questionable
- Nikola Jovic (Back) – Out
