Any bout between the Phoenix Suns and the Dallas Mavericks deserves some extra attention. Featuring stars Devin Booker, Luka Doncic, Chris Paul, and Kristaps Porzingis, the cast for tonight’s event rivals that of The Avengers or Zach Snyder’s Justice League.
With it all set to unfold under a national TV spotlight, fans need to get their popcorn ready for this third installment to an already intriguing regular season series between the Valley Boys and the Mavs. Although Phoenix ended up winning both games prior to tonight, they did so only by single digits each time out.
Tonight though, Dallas seeks their revenge while the Suns look to end their road trip with a dub and extend a five-game winning streak. Hold onto your butts.
Phoenix Suns vs Dallas Mavericks Odds, Moneyline, Over/Under
According to WynnBET, the Suns come into this matchup at -3.0 point favorites. Their moneyline odds are -160 and the game’s over/under currently sits at 216.5 points.
With the Suns riding a win streak and maintaining the league’s best record, it makes sense for them to remain the favorite even with Deandre Ayton unable to play tonight and with the game played on Dallas’s home floor. However, those elements tipping Dallas’s way do validate the spread only being three points.
The game’s over/under mark does spark some curiosity though. The Mavericks defense has been dynamite lately, allowing their opponents to average just 94.7 points per game over their last 10 contests—far and away the lowest by any team.
However, six of those 10 games were played against bottom-10 scoring units this year, including two vs the Oklahoma City Thunder who rank dead last. With so much offensive firepower on the floor tonight, and with Dallas’s defensive numbers possibly a bit deceiving, taking the over might pay off.
Phoenix Suns vs Dallas Mavericks Lineups
Playing without Ayton, the Suns regress to their “starters plus McGee” lineup for the seventh time this season. However, all those games did go down as wins for Phoenix, still illustrating this unit as a solid alternative.
- PG: Chris Paul
- SG: Devin Booker
- SF: Mikal Bridges
- PF: Jae Crowder
- C: JaVale McGee
The Mavs just got Porzingis back a few days ago, so with no more major injuries, expect to see Dallas’s typical starting five take the floor first tonight.
- PG: Luka Doncic
- SG: Jalen Brunson
- SF: Dorian Finney-Smith
- PF: Maxi Kleber
- C: Kristaps Porzingis
Phoenix Suns vs Dallas Mavericks Prediction
Playing this game as the latter portion of a back-to-back sequence while the Suns come off a two-day rest period, Dallas’s disadvantage’s balance out with Phoenix’s regarding the Ayton situation.
But when still looking at these team’s from a general standpoint, the biggest disparity between them both deals with turnovers, and it does not favor Phoenix.
So far this season, Dallas averages the second fewest turnovers per game. Meanwhile, the Suns average the seventh most points per game off turnovers. So with the Mavericks built to deprive Phoenix of those easy points which they normally rely on, they might cause some trouble.
From there though, and with the way the Suns have been playing lately, this game likely boils down to how the stars play, where Porzingis and Doncic take an advantage over Booker and Paul.
For their series this year, Phoenix’s backcourt duo averages 34.0 points, 14.5 assists, and 13.5 rebounds per game while shooting 40.3 percent from the field. But for Dallas, their star tandem averages 50.7 points, 11.2 assists, and 17.0 rebounds per game while shooting 45.1 percent.
With respect to Booker’s scorching hot play of late, Phoenix makes this a neck-for-neck game, but every other sign points to a Dallas victory.
Final: Phoenix Suns 103, Dallas Mavericks 105
Phoenix Suns Next Up
The Suns finally return home after this contest, welcoming the Indiana Pacers for a Saturday evening game. The two teams faced off not too long ago, with the Suns taking 112-94 victory over Indiana last week thanks to a red hot second half shooting the ball.
But as an Eastern Conference team, this game concludes the brief season series between these two proud franchises. It also grants Phoenix one last glimpse at Torrey Craig and Justin Holiday, who both remain interesting trade targets for the team to keep an eye one.