Welcome to our weekly edition of who’s rising, who’s falling? Every Monday morning, we will take a look at which players on the Mavs have had a hot or cold past week and, if you’re a fantasy player, who’s stock you should buy going into the week. Check here every Monday for the latest.
The Past Week:
The Mavericks had 3 games this week against very good opponents. The Mavs started out the week late on Wednesday after having 2 days off following a loss to the Spurs one Sunday ago. Dallas met up with the Nuggets in Denver in a nationally televised game that featured a much depleted home team hand the Mavs a surprising 115-110 loss that made it 3 defeats in a row. The Mavs then traveled back to Dallas for a Friday matchup with the Western Conference giant Portland Trailblazers. Although they blew one a 30 point lead (which would have been the biggest let up in team history) the Mavs were able to escape with a 103-98 victory. The team finished up the week against the Eastern Conference leading Indiana Pacers at home and played a great all-around game as they were able to make it two W’s in a row as they beat the victors 105-94.
Who’s up?
Devin Harris
With proven veterans in this league, you just always know that no matter how bad of a slump they’re in, they can always be counted on to contribute and help a team win. Devin Harris showed how resilient he is to a little cold streak this past week. After being the player that had the lowest stock on the team heading into the week, (shot 18% from the floor from February 23-March 2) Harris rebounded quite well. On Wednesday he did have yet another poor shooting performance (0-5 from the field with 2 points) but he showed he contribute in other ways as he picked up a season high 11 assists (a game high as well) and 4 rebounds to go along with 2 steals and only 1 turnover in just 18 minutes of action. Harris kept the Mavs in the game for stretches in the 2nd and 3rd quarters with his great finds (the PG was responsible for 31 of the Mavs 110 points in his 18 minutes per NBA.com). On Friday Harris received a few more minutes from coach Carlisle as he scored 12 points on 4-6 shooting to go with 3 rebounds and 1 assist. Harris led all bench scorers for the evening and played some good defense on star Damian Lillard before the Portland run that put them back in the game. Harris followed up Friday’s solid performance with an outstanding 20 point- 5 assist- 1 rebound outing on 6-9 shooting to go with a season high-tying 4 steals as Harris received the nod for the crunch time minutes over b. With the Mavs clinging to a 2 point lead with 3 minutes to go, Harris stole the ball from Roy Hibbert and was able to race up court and hit a highly contested layup as he was fouled in the process, he converted the and-one. Harris then hit a 3 to put the Mavs up 10 with a minute to go that proved to be the dagger for the Pacers. With Harris now starting to once again find his shot and continue to be a strong point on defense, the Mavs have not so coincidentally gotten back to its winning ways. There’s no reason to believe Harris can’t continue to ride this momentum and have great outings in the 3 road games the Mavs will have on their schedule this week. Look for Harris to be a nice option also in crunch time if Calderon happens to be struggling that night.
Who’s down?
Dejuan Blair
Blair has been on a slow and steady decline as of late; it has now become fast and steep after this past week. The veteran big man has been seeing a decrease of playing time but none was more evident than Wednesdays and Fridays games, collecting just 7 minutes combined in both contests. Blair was basically a no show on the box score against the Nuggets, picking up a foul as his only statistic before exiting for the night. On Friday, Blair played just 4 minutes (2 points and 2 boards but also picking up 2 fouls including an and-one), before being benched the rest of the night. On Sunday Coach Carlisle gave him a significant spike in minutes (18) but Blair wasn’t able to capitalize. Although he did go against the likes of Roy Hibbert and Ian Mahimmi, Blair simply looked a step off and was only able to collect 5 points and 1 rebound on 1-4 shooting including 3 missed free throws (3-6) and an absurd 5 fouls. In the past week, Blair has had more fouls (9) then points and rebounds, something that simply cannot happen. Part of the reason Blair has had a slash in playing time has been the emergence of Brandan Wright but his play also has been forcing Coach Carlisle’s hand somewhat in not putting him out on the floor. This upcoming week will be interesting as the Mavs aren’t really going up against high quality big men (with the exception of Serge Ibaka) so it could be very possible Blair could continue to receive spot minutes or even DNP’s altogether. However, if he can find a way to make the most of his chances, he could play himself back into the solid rotation for good and show he can contribute in a backup role.
The Week Ahead:
The Mavs’ 3 games will all be on the road as they play in Oakland, Utah, and Oklahoma City against 2 high flying elite teams (Warriors and Thunder) and another team that shouldn’t be taken lightly (Jazz). This will be big in terms of playoff chances as the Mavs need to start putting together long winning streaks to have security for a coveted playoff spot.
Go Mavs!
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