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Final Score: Mavericks defeated Celtics 113-104
The Dallas Mavericks continued their great run, winning six of their past seven games as they overcame a struggling Boston Celtics team that was missing Gordon Hayward.
The game was sealed by the Mavericks as they went into the 4th quarter with a five-point lead with Harrison Barnes and J.J Barea leading their scoring with 20 points apiece. For the Celtics, it was Tatum trying his best with 21 points as he attempted to lift Boston to another win as their record falls to 10-10.
Here are three points we can take away from the game earlier today.
#3 Celtics might have to choose between Jayson Tatum and Gordon Hayward
After a great win over fellow Eastern Conference title contenders the Toronto Raptors in overtime, the Boston Celtics have followed with taking a loss in four of their past five games, losing against Utah, Charlotte, New York and now Dallas.
Following an impressive playoff run last season, taking the Cleveland Cavaliers to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals, many believed the Celtics were outright favorites to take home the Eastern Conference title this time out after getting back their two All-Stars from injury, Gordon Hayward and Kyrie Irving.
Unfortunately, these high expectations currently do not seem to be following through as the Celtics are 10-10 and currently sitting 7th in the Eastern Conference standings.
A big issue for the Boston Celtics has been the play of second-year star Jayson Tatum, he has taken an obvious hit in his form and play style this season with the additions of the two All-Stars, mainly that of Gordon Hayward.
With Hayward out for the game at Dallas, Tatum had one of his best games of the season as he was allowed more time with the ball to find his shot and get into a better rhythm as he went on to score a game-high 21 points on 64% shooting from the field and 50% from the three-point line.
It's clear that the Boston Celtics have some tough decisions to make coming up, as their future no doubt rests with Tatum, and they will have to decide whether or not Hayward is stunting his development and if the short-term gain is worth the long-term pain.
#2 DeAndre Jordan continues to be what the Mavericks have been missing
Over the past two years, the Dallas Mavericks have continued to be one of the worst rebounding teams in the league without a true glass cleaning center. There was a reason Dallas attempted to sign Jordan years ago, but fortunately, they have now gotten the man they needed.
Jordan has been a double-double machine for much of his career and there has been no change with that at the Mavericks. Jordan was able to bully the Celtics' bigs on his way to 14 points and 13 rebounds in 33 minutes, as he played a key part on both sides of the courts to help the Mavericks win the game.
Both his points and rebounds are up this year from his career averages and he is currently sitting 3rd in rebounding at 13.6 rebounds per game behind only Andre Drummond and Hasan Whiteside.
The signing of Jordan was no doubt a good choice and it was on show once again as Jordan matched up perfectly against the Boston Celtics and played an important part in the victory.
#3 J.J Barea can still take over games
J.J Barea has been constantly showing people this season that he's still got game and should be taken as seriously as ever in his 12 years in the NBA.
The six foot Puerto Rican is having a great season off the bench for the Dallas Mavericks and he continued this trend against the Celtics. Barea lead the Mavericks in both assist and points, tied with rookie Luka Doncic and Harrison Barnes respectively. In only 26 minutes on the court, Barea managed to dominate the Celtics, shooting 57% from the field as he ran the game from the point guard position.
The veteran backup is happy as always to take a bench position as the younger guards continue to develop into hopeful stars, but he is as important as ever to the Dallas team and he has been continuously showing why this season.
