Golden State Warriors: 3 Biggest threats in Play-In Tournament
By Tony Pesta
Golden State Warriors top threats: Dallas Mavericks
A recent run has helped the Dallas Mavericks catapult to sixth in the Western Conference — pushing them out of the Play-In tournament. However, with Kristaps Porzingis dealing with a sprained ankle, the Mavs could slip back into the picture.
In the event that Dallas and the Golden State Warriors somehow face off in the tournament, what should we expect? The Mavs have won four of their last five meetings with the Dubs, only losing once this season due to a 40 point bomb from Kelly Oubre.
The high-octane offensive onslaught the Mavericks enforce every single night is tough to keep up with for a short-handed Dubs team. Stephen Curry can only score so much and the Mavericks are averaging 131 points per game against the Warriors since 2019.
Luka Doncic isn’t an easy player to contain. He’s a constant threat to score from all areas on the floor and he will punish you for overplaying him with clean dimes to open teammates. He isn’t the type of player you want to face in big games either — as we all saw his remarkable performance in the NBA Bubble, averaging 31.0 points, 9.8 rebounds and 8.7 assists and pushing the LA Clippers to six games in the first round.
Nonetheless, the Dubs actually rank above the Mavericks in points and 3-pointers this season. With the defensive wing tandem of Andrew Wiggins, Kelly Oubre and Juan Toscano-Anderson, I trust the Warriors have enough to compete with the Mavs opposing threats.