Are the Dallas Mavericks, in front of their committed supporters’ eyes, growing into a club capable of engaging in a roughriderGafford type of play? If Thursday night’s game against the Utah Jazz is any indicator, it appears that way.
Not only did the Mavericks dominate the Jazz for the entirety of the game. However, they did it while closing the night with an unprecedented 18 dunks.
The Mavericks made 43 field goals against Utah. There were 18 dunks. That accounts for 41.9% of their made field goals. That is also roughrider stuff.
The 18 dunks tie for the second-most in a game in NBA history, dating back to the 1996-97 season when play-by-play data began recording this statistic. It trails only the Los Angeles Clippers’ 20 dunks against the San Antonio Spurs on December 21, 2019, and the Washington Wizards’ 18 against the Minnesota Timberwolves on December 1, 2021.
Daniel Gafford is the common denominator between the Mavericks and Jazz, as well as the Wizards and Timberwolves. He participated in both games.
Gafford was 10-for-11 from the field on Thursday. All ten of his field goals were dunks.
Gafford was also an equal opportunity dunker. He made one dunk in the first quarter, two in the second, three in the third, and four in the fourth. Basically, ESPN could have crafted its whole Top 10 plays of the day around Gafford’s dunks.
“Yeah, it was like one of those Wilt (Chamberlain) nights—10-for-11,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said, alluding to Gafford. “The quarterbacks enjoy finding him.
“He has excellent hands. We haven’t had someone with his ability to finish in traffic before.”Dunk
Including the five layups, 53.5 percent of the Mavs’ made field goals (23 of 43) were dunks or layups. That is simple efficiency, and it will win many ballgames.
Overall, the Mavs successfully executed 11 lob dunks.
The Mavericks played a strong roughrider style of basketball in body pounding Jazz.
Here are three key takeaways from the Mavericks’ 16-point victory over the Jazz.
GAFFORD GETS PERSONAL: Not only did Mavericks center Daniel Gafford skillfully record ten dunks. He also recorded 24 points, six rebounds, and five assists. The 24 points are two short of Gafford’s career high of 26. Furthermore, this is the first time Gafford has had at least 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists. Roy Tarpley (Nov. 3, 1990) and Tom LaGarde (Dec. 30, 1980 and Feb. 11, 1981) are the only other Mavs centers who have produced similar stat lines.
EASY PICKS: Counting the five layups made by the Mavs on Thursday, 53.5
Luka Dončić of the Dallas Mavericks rebounded quickly from a poor shooting performance against the San Antonio Spurs. Dončić shot 6-of-27 from the field, including 2-of-12 from three-point range against the Spurs. But against the Jazz, he shot 11-of-23 from the floor, including 4-of-10 from beyond the three-point line.
