Dallas, TX
Mavs’ rally sputters against Suns as Dallas adds to longest losing skid in almost 10 years
PHOENIX — It’s not every day that Patrick Dumont visits an opposing NBA arena, but the Mavericks governor sat courtside at Mortgage Matchup Center on Tuesday to watch his team attempt to snap a seven-game losing streak.
However, any hopes he and the Mavericks had of righting the ship were spoiled by the second quarter when they were faced with a 31-point deficit that made a comeback too difficult to overcome.
The Mavericks suffered a 120-111 loss to the Phoenix Suns and increased their season-long skid to eight games — the franchise’s longest losing streak since the 2016-17 season.
The last time the Mavericks lost eight consecutive games was nearly 10 years ago, and that streak lasted from Nov. 6, 2016 to Nov. 27, 2016.
After trailing by double digits for the majority of the game, Dallas valiantly fought back in the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to six with 2 minutes left, but ran out of gas.
“We got off to a slow start,” Kidd said. “They were physical and we weren’t in that first half. I thought the group did a better job in that second half. Getting to the free throw line 44 times. We gotta be able to produce more 3s. We just didn’t do that…The group fought.”
There are several reasons why the Mavericks haven’t been able to snap out of their funk, starting with their 3-point struggles.
Three-point shooting has also been an issue during the last seven games as Dallas has only been able to convert on 10 triples per game, which is 29th in the NBA over that stretch. Tuesday night was a nightmare from the 3-point line as the Mavericks connected on just 5 of 22 from beyond the arc.
“Sometimes when they don’t go down early, we kind of get discouraged and we gotta be better,” Kidd said. “In this league, you miss some and we gotta look at tape, especially with a team like this that are going to pack the paint.”
Dallas also entered Tuesday’s matchup losing by an average of 8.6 points during their streak, but it’s been a struggle on the offensive end with just 113 points per game since a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Jan. 24.
The Mavericks attempted the third-most field goal attempts (94.9) across the league over the last seven games, but they’re 27th in the NBA in efficiency, making just 44.6% from the field. On Tuesday, they attempted 77 field goals and finished shooting 48.1%.
Naji Marshall and Cooper Flagg were the Mavericks’ leading scorers on Tuesday, each bouncing back from uncharacteristic performances on Saturday night in San Antonio.
Marshall led Dallas with 31 points on 12 of 17 from the field, his fifth outing of 25 points or more, setting a new career-high for most 25-point games in a single season.
Flagg added 27 points with 11 of 14 coming from the free throw line. Tuesday marked Flagg’s 24th career 20-point effort, which tied Kobe Bryant for the sixth-most 20-point games by a teenager in NBA history.
“I was aggressive,” Flagg said. “Getting downhill to my spots, trying to play with physicality and I was rewarded with getting to the free-throw line. I thought that was good.”
He nearly reached a significant milestone, but came four points short of 1,000 career points. Flagg added another highlight to his rookie reel late in the second quarter when he threw his left shoulder into the chest of Dillon Brooks and posterized the Suns forward with a one-handed dunk.
Dumont was pleased with his star rookie’s performance. During the fourth quarter, Flagg connected on a baseline midrange jumper through contact, which led to an enthusiastic round of applause by the Mavericks governor.
After the game, Dumont hung around in the Mavericks locker room to congratulate Flagg on a good game, along with Caleb Martin, who suffered a left knee and ankle injury.
It was nearly five years ago when Khris Middleton made his NBA Finals debut in Phoenix. On Tuesday, the veteran sharpshooter returned to that same arena for his first game in a Mavericks uniform. However, those fond memories of his lone championship were sullied by yet another loss by his new team.
Middleton played 21 minutes off the bench and finished with 13 points and five rebounds. PJ Washington added 13 points and 5 rebounds as well. Marvin Bagley III had another solid game with nine points and eight rebounds.
Tyus Jones, who started in Marshall’s place, struggled with just two points and three assists and did not start in the second half.
While the blowout loss and growing losing streak looks bad on paper, it helps the Mavericks (19-34) inch closer to the floundering Utah Jazz (17-37) in the league’s infamous race toward the bottom of the standings as teams position themselves for a top-heavy 2026 NBA draft.
Dumont is also expected to be at Crypto.Com Arena for Thursday’s game against the Lakers, the final game before the All-Star break begins.
X: @MikeACurtis2
Find more Mavericks coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
The search for the next general manager or president of basketball operations of the Dallas Mavericks has begun. They terminated Nico Harrison in November, which was about nine months too late, and gave any available candidates clear notice that they were open for business.
The plan was always to wait until after the season to start the search. While names popped up as the season reached an end, they didn’t begin turning over the staff until the Monday after the season ended. However, Dallas Mavericks fans are not going to like how the team is going about the search.
Patrick Dumont Leading Search for General Manager
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the Mavericks are not hiring a search firm in their hunt for a new lead executive. Instead, team governor Patrick Dumont is “acting as his own point person.”
This is an… interesting decision, to say the least. Dumont is not a basketball person whatsoever, and most organizations usually hire a search firm. The Chicago Bulls hired one as they look for their replacement for Arturas Karnisovas. Just because a firm is hired doesn’t mean a team will listen, though.
The Mavericks hired a firm in their last search for a GM. They let Donnie Nelson go in 2021 after a long tenure with the Mavs. Instead of listening to the firm, though, Mark Cuban ignored it to hire Nico Harrison, who had no previous NBA front office experience. Harrison had been an executive with Nike, which gave him connections with players like Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, and plenty of others.
For a while, that seemed to be working out okay. While he still had some questionable transactions, such as trading for Christian Wood and letting Jalen Brunson walk in free agency, they were still able to make a run to the NBA Finals in 2024. Then, he blew it all up, trading away Luka Doncic for an older and injured Anthony Davis, and the team hasn’t been the same since.
It’s imperative that the Mavericks get this hire correct. The interim Co-GM setup with Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley has performed admirably, but the 2026 NBA Draft is important for the Mavs to get right. It’s their best chance to pair Cooper Flagg with another young star, as they don’t own their first-round pick again until 2031 after this.
Hiring the right GM could help bring in more draft capital by bringing in bad contracts or flipping veterans into picks.
Dumont was able to convince Rick Welts, a Hall of Famer, to come out of retirement to be the CEO and lead the charge for a new arena. Maybe Dumont pulls another rabbit out of his hat for the GM.
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For a moment, it looked like FC Dallas was on its way to another statement win at home tonight.
Petar Musa scored two first half goals, to extend his Golden Boot leading tally to nine goals. But after Dallas grabbed control, the Galaxy found a way back before halftime with goals from Lucas Sanabria and Joseph Paintsil.
The second half brought more chances and more frustration for Dallas, which finished the night with 13 shots to LA’s nine. In the end, the point stretched Dallas’ unbeaten run to five games, though just like last week, it felt like another match where Dallas left points on the table.
Key Moments
7’ – GOAL! After a poor pass back by a LA defender, Petar Musa was free to go one-on-one with the LA goalkeeper. After a touch to get ahead of a defender, Musa slotted home his eighth goal of the season from outside the penalty box.
21’ – Offside! Joaquin Valiente sent a floating ball over the Galaxy defense, where Musa was able to get behind the defense and make an easy play for what appeared to be his second goal of the night. The play was called offside despite a fairly lengthy review period.
38’ – GOAL! This one counts! Musa gets his second of the night off a great ball from Chris Cappis. Logan Farrington picked off the ball in the midfield. He then played Cappis wide to the left of the penalty area. Cappis immediately played a ball back across the goal for Musa to slide in and finish for his ninth of the season.
43’ – Goal LA. Lucas Sanabria got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He took a couple of touches to get outside the penalty box before firing a shot that beat Michael Collodi at the near post.
45+4’ – Goal LA. Gabriel Pec got the ball near the top of the penalty area. He pulled the ball back a bit, which caught a pair of Dallas defenders. This allowed Joseph Painstil to get free behind the Dallas defense as Pec played him through inside the penalty area. Pec immediately smashed home a shot above Collodi to tie the game.
75’ – Another offside goal. This time on a corner kick for Dallas, after a scrum in the penalty box, Kaick hammered home what looked to be the go-ahead goal. But after a few seconds the flag was raised due to a deflection on Osaze Urhoghide, who was in an offside position.
Instant Reaction
Yeah, this is another disappointing result for this team. In a real way, it felt like the first half against Houston from last month. Dallas grabbed the lead, looked in control, but some defensive miscues opened the game up for the visitors to climb back.
With a double-game week coming up, this will certainly be another game where Dallas will wonder ‘what if’ more than anything else…especially when you factor in the two goals called off for offside.
About the Subs
Eric Quill went to his bench for the first time in the 66th minute, as he brought on Santiago Moreno for Logan Farrington. Quill went to his bench again 81st minute with Ran Binyamin and Nolan Norris coming on for Sebastien Ibeagha and Deedson. The final sub came during stoppage time with Herman Johansson and Joaquin Valiente coming off for Sam Sarver and rookie Nick Simmonds, who made his MLS debut.
Man of the Match
No question about it tonight, it has to be Musa.
Where does this fit into the season
As of this writing, the draw puts Dallas into a three-way tie for 5th place with Real Salt Lake and Seattle. Both are in action right now and look firmly in control of their games. I’d expect Dallas to be in 7th place by the end of the night.
What’s next for FC Dallas
Dallas wraps up a three-game homestand next Wednesday night as they host Minnesota United.
Dallas, TX
Akheem Mesidor selected by Cowboys by Blogging The Boys in SB Nation’s community mock draft
Akheem Mesidor, Edge, Miami
Pass rush has been an issue since the Micah Parsons trade. The Rashan Gary trade helped, but Dallas still needs an injection of talent. Akheem Mesidor fits here because his body size allows for some versatility inside and out, something DC Christian Parker utilizes. Mesidor is also a high-motor player with a deep bag of pass rush moves.
His last season at Miami was full of disruption in the offensive backfield and he shows an all-around game, not just a bend-around-the-edge pass rusher. Yes, he’s a little older than you’d like in a rookie (25), but his motor, pass rush toolbox, and ability to play the run matches up with a need and makes him a quality pick at number 20.
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