Through the first 10 games of the season, the Mavericks have been a mess on both sides of the floor. Heading into Monday night’s matchup with the 6-4 Milwaukee Bucks, Dallas was just 3-7. With a paint defense that was 26th in the NBA and Giannis Antetokounmpo coming to town, it seemed like this was going to be a nightmare matchup for the Mavs. Giannis was first in the NBA in points in the paint per game at 23.8 heading into Monday night. Additionally, the Bucks were the NBA’s best 3-point shooting team heading into the matchup at a red hot 41%. This felt like the perfect storm.
Let’s be honest. It was a lot closer than most of us expected. Ultimately, Milwaukee edged out Dallas in a 116-114 nail-biter. There were some good, bad, and ugly to this game for Dallas. Here are 3 telling stats that summed up the night.
26 Points, 9 Rebounds, 4 Assists for Flagg
Let’s start with the good. Cooper Flagg had his best game of the season. He attacked Milwaukee’s defense and made plays for himself and his teammates. Flagg ended the night with 26 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists in 35 minutes. He also added 2 steals and 1 block on the defensive end. Flagg was an efficient 9/15 from the floor, and 7/10 from the free throw line.
The beauty of Cooper Flagg’s offensive game is that he never forces anything. He lets the game come to him and makes the right plays, whether that’s making an extra pass, dribble penetration, or exposing mismatches. He did a lot of that against the Bucks and looked more like a 24-year-old vet, than an 18-year-old rookie. The Mavericks offense still looked clunky and disjointed in stretches, but this was a big bright spot to Monday’s loss. If you can’t win games, showcase Cooper. We got that on Monday night.
29 Maverick Fast Break Points
Finally! The Mavericks’ bizarre place of being a top 5 team in pace and bottom 5 team in scoring has had us all scratching our heads. The Mavericks turned that around on Monday. After a good outing against the Wizards on Saturday night, converting 18 Washington turnovers into 33 points, the Mavs continued the good habit against the Bucks. Dallas outscored Milwaukee 29 to 6 in fast break points, having a near perfect return on the Bucks’ 13 turnovers.
Turnovers are where the Mavericks have to capitalize if they want to stay in games, let alone win them. Until the offense finds any kind of rhythm, Dallas will have to rely on converting opponent turnovers into easy points. That was the formula against the Wizards, and it almost beat a very good Bucks team. Guys like Cooper Flagg, P. J. Washington, Max Christie, D’Angelo Russell, and many others thrive in the open floor. Dallas’s offense isn’t good enough to rattle any good defensive team, but if you can get out and run before the defense gets set, you give yourself a chance.
41 Free Throws and 9 Threes
One thing the Mavericks have done this season is shooting more free throws than their opponent. Coming into Monday, Dallas was 10th in the NBA in free throw attempts per game at 26.8. That number jumped to 28.1 by the end of the night, after 41 attempts against Milwaukee, good enough for 8th in the NBA. Of the 41 attempts, the Mavericks shot relatively well, making 31. Although, PJ Washington missed two key free throws with 1.2 seconds left in the game that could have tied the score at 116. The Bucks shot 25 total free throws.
The bully-ball style of getting to the free throw line once again did not translate into a win for the Mavs. The offense for Dallas has been so absurdly bad, the best set they run is getting to the free throw line. Of all the inconsistencies this year with the team, this has been something the team is good at. But it’s not working. And a big part of that is everything else that’s going on with the offense - particularly the 3-point shooting.
Dallas shot just 23.1% from three against the Bucks on 9-39 shooting. They are dead last in the NBA in 3-point shooting efficiency at just 29.5%, with an overall offensive efficiency rating of 104.5 points per game, good enough for 29th in the NBA. Even when the Mavs were a +11 in makes from the free throw line, 31/41 vs the Bucks’ 20/25, they were blistered from behind the arc (again). Milwaukee was a league-best 41% from three entering Monday night and shot 38.9% on 14-36 shooting. The +11 from the free throw line wasn’t enough to overcome -15 from three. This has been a constant issue for Dallas all season long.
The archaic style of trying to dominate a team inside with little outside shooting might suit the 2004 Pistons style, but not in this 2025 NBA. Dallas’s lack of perimeter shooting is a major pain point every single night and until the Mavs can change personnel or start knocking down shots, it’ll be hard to win with their current formula.
Some Good, But a Lot Still Bad
The Mavericks dropped to 3-8 after the Monday night loss to Milwaukee, but there were some positives like converting fast break opportunities and Cooper Flagg being more like Cooper Flagg. However, if they want to salvage this season in any way before it’s too late, they have to start shooting the ball better. It’s that simple. The Mavericks can begin that turnaround on Wednesday night at home against the Phoenix Suns.