Dallas, TX
ESPN Personality Has Mavericks as a Top Five Team in NBA
ESPN personality Brian Windhorst recently did his NBA team rankings, and the defending Western champion Dallas Mavericks were amongst his top five entering the 2024-25 season. The other teams on the list were not surprising.
The defending champion Boston Celtics took the top spot in the ranking after a dominant season and five-game Finals victory over Dallas. Given they return all of their key players essentially, Boston’s spot as the top team in the NBA will remain unchanged until further notice.
Second is the Oklahoma City Thunder, whose addition of Alex Caruso in the offseason in exchange for Josh Giddey as well as their signing of Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein makes them a formidable opponent in the West.
READ MORE: Who Would The Mavericks Protect In An Expansion Draft?
Coming in third is the Denver Nuggets, who just re-signed guard Jamal Murray to a 4-year, $208 million max extension to keep their corps together. Despite losing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the offseason, center Nikola Jokic still looms large as one of the best players in the league.
In fourth place is the team Dallas defeated in the Western Conference Finals, the Minnesota Timberwolves, whose corps of Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert, Jaden McDaniels, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Naz Reid gives them a great chance to once again make a run at the title.
Fifth is the Dallas Mavericks, with the star-laden backcourt of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving will once again help the team compete for a chance to repeat as the best team in the West.
There are a few interesting things about this list. The first is that four of the five teams on the list are from the Western Conference, even though the defending champion Celtics hail from the East. The fact that Dallas defeated two of the four teams ahead of them during their playoff run last season also stands out because it demonstrates that the Mavericks’ run was no fluke.
It is a bit surprising that Dallas isn’t higher on the list, but it’s still a good sign that they’re getting some level of respect after last year’s performance. Hopefully, the Mavericks end up higher on the postseason rankings.
READ MORE: NBA Experts Predict Contract Extensions For Mavericks Guards
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Dallas, TX
Johnston scores twice, Stars hold off Wild in Game 2 to even West 1st Round | NHL.com
Johnston gave the Stars a 1-0 lead at 8:58 of the first period. His slap shot from above the right face-off circle deflected off Wild forward Danila Yurov and then bounced off the end boards and in off Wallstedt’s left arm.
“I’ve had a goal like that go in on me, too, that’s a tough bounce,” Oettinger said. “Like I said in Game 1, we got some bad bounces. We got a nice bounce there. We had one where I was behind the net, and the guy was shooting it in the net and our (defense) stopped it, so we got some good bounces. The way we played the last 40 minutes of the game, I think, didn’t give up much, had a ton of good chances offensively. The power play, we got looks and our (penalty kill) was great. If we kind of build off the game that we played the last 40 minutes, I think we should feel very good for the next few games.”
Faber tied it 1-1 at 11:33. He took a pass from Hughes, skated around Robertson in the left circle and cut to the slot, where his wrist shot ramped up and in off Oettinger.
Duchene put the Stars back up 2-1 with a power-play goal at 4:02 of the second period. Mikko Rantanen gained the offensive zone along the right boards and sent a backhand pass to Duchene, who snapped the puck between Wallstedt’s pads from in front.
Robertson made it 3-1 at 7:09 of the third period when he tipped Lundkvist’s wrist shot from the blue line past the right pad of Wallstedt.
“I think we got to do a better job, I mean, the odd-man’s, right? I thought we played a really good game. Probably their best game, you know, meaningful game. And, yeah, we didn’t get fazed by it. Was really good by us. Just got to be smarter in some areas, and we get to go back home and in front of our crowd,” Minnesota forward Marcus Foligno said. “They want (penalties). I mean, they’re looking to play 5-on-4. I mean, that’s their game. They can’t hang with us 5-on-5. We got to just be smarter, and myself included. But it’s a heated game out there. You’re gonna have emotional swings and learn from it. We got a split series.”
Dallas, TX
Dallas Cowboys 2026 NFL Draft debate heats up
Jeff Kolb and Sam Gannon welcome Cowboys insiders Clarence Hill (All City Dallas) and Calvin Watkins (Dallas Morning News) for a hilarious breakdown of the upcoming 2026 NFL Draft. Giving insight, arguments, and plenty of laughs as two of the best Dallas Cowboys writers in the business go head-to-head on what Dallas should do next.
Dallas, TX
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