As the Dallas Mavericks continue to play out a six-game road trip, the losses continue to pile up. The team dropped its eighth consecutive game — this time, losing 124-112 against the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena on Tuesday night. Dallas has now lost 18 of its last 20 games.
The losses are starting to blur together in Dallas.
Coming off a 30-point blowout loss in Toronto, the Mavericks responded with a much more competitive performance against another tough Eastern Conference opponent. However, after giving up 40 points in the first quarter, Dallas used a comeback to later tie the game after trailing by as many as 18. Behind Nickeil Alexander-Walker knocking down a pair of pivotal 3-pointers and Jalen Johnson icing the game by getting downhill, the Mavericks left the arena with a 21-44 record.
The Mavericks’ veteran wings, Klay Thompson and Khris Middleton, brought a spark off the bench, but it ultimately wasn’t enough. Thompson shot 5-of-11 from beyond the arc and racked up a team-high 21 points, marking a league-most 14th game this season with at least five 3-pointers off the bench. Middleton scored 16 while shooting 5-of-8. Cooper Flagg finished with 14 points on 6-of-16 shooting, spending much of the night battling Dyson Daniels, who finished with 14 points and 10 assists for the Hawks. Alexander-Walker led Atlanta with 29. Johnson had 27. Onyeka Okongwu added 18 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd admired the way his team responded after trailing early, but the loss continued an ongoing trend in a season focused on developing their 19-year-old rookie. Dallas was 29 seconds away from registering its 40th clutch game of the season, but didn’t qualify. The Mavericks are 14-25 in those situations.
“This group has always fought, no matter what the score is,” Kidd said. “This is a long road trip. We got ourselves in position to win tonight. Unfortunately, we just couldn’t make the plays down the stretch.”
Dallas Mavericks Rotation Shake-Up
Kidd made lineup changes on Tuesday, including moving Naji Marshall into the starting lineup next to Max Christie in the backcourt, alongside Flagg, P.J. Washington, and Daniel Gafford. Middleton moved to the bench after starting the previous 10 games.
During his pre-game press conference, Kidd hinted that more lineup changes could take place for the Mavericks over the stretch run of the season.
“A lot of times, coming back from injury, minute restrictions, different lineups — we had Naji starting there, he was playing well, then he was out, and then we had Khris starting,” Kidd said. “We’re just looking at different combinations as we go forward. We can look at different starting lineups, different rotations. We have 18 games left to look at those things, so we’ll start that tonight.”
The Mavericks did have as healthy a team as they’ve had in 2025-26, with the exception of Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II, who remain sidelined for the remainder of the season. The only other inactive players were two-way contract signees.
However, the adjusted starting lineup struggled to get stops early. Atlanta scored 40 points in the opening period, while the Mavericks totaled just 26. The Mavericks turned it over frequently. Daniels stole it from Flagg and finished at the 9:29 mark. P.J. Washington was called for a charge. Marshall traveled. By the time Gabe Vincent sank a 3-pointer with under three minutes left in the quarter, Atlanta led 31-19, forcing Dallas to dig out of a significant hole. Alexander-Walker finished off the period with a layup and blocked Gafford in the final 35 seconds to give Atlanta a 40-26 advantage when the end-of-quarter buzzer sounded.
“We gave up that first quarter — that was a big number to try to get out of that hole,” Kidd said. “They took advantage of our defense at the top of the floor.”
Gafford felt the Mavericks’ early shortcomings were self-inflicted. With improper spacing and mistakes leading to turnovers, Dallas ultimately improved later, but did not put itself in a position to succeed early.
“We turned the ball over a little early, and our spacing wasn’t the best,” Gafford said. “I think it was one of those starts where we were kind of sluggish. But we figured it out throughout the process. It was a good learning point for us, just figuring out ways to play against a team like that.”
Gafford has been trending upward lately after dealing with a season-long right ankle issue. He was coming off a season-high 21 points in Sunday’s loss in Toronto, shooting a perfect 10-for-10 from the field.
Before tipoff, Kidd praised the energy Gafford has provided. It carried over as Gafford totaled 14 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 6-for-9 from the floor and recording his third consecutive double-double.
“The lift was there,” Kidd said, “and we’re going to need that tonight.”
The most effective part of the Mavericks’ lineup change was the spark that Middleton brought off the bench, hitting a mid-range jumper on the team’s first play of the second quarter. Ryan Nembhard converted off a Brandon Williams drive-and-kick. Marvin Bagley III came alive on the offensive glass. Dallas won the second period 27-24, trimming the deficit to 64-55 at halftime. Dallas was within striking distance.
Then came the third quarter, and the best stretch of basketball the Mavericks played all night. They outscored Atlanta 38-31 in the period. Middleton hit two 3-pointers in a three-minute span, both assisted by Bagley. Thompson stole the ball from Alexander-Walker at 2:25, hit a fade-away, then buried a corner 3 at 1:01 — also off a Williams assist — to cut it to 89-93. Williams kept driving into the paint and finding shooters on the kick-out. Dallas went into the fourth trailing by just four, having outscored Atlanta by 13 over the previous six quarters.
That third-quarter group — Thompson, Middleton, Bagley, Williams, and Marshall — was the best unit Dallas put on the floor all night. Williams finished with 13 points and five assists, earning most of them the hard way — he went 7-of-8 from the free throw line. Bagley contributed seven points and six rebounds, with his ability to tip the ball back on the offensive glass keeping possessions alive. Marshall ended with 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting with four assists, though his three turnovers contributed to the ball-security issue that haunted Dallas all night. Caleb Martin and Dwight Powell were both out of the rotation. Gafford, who watched it from the bench for stretches, said Williams’s penetration was the key that unlocked everything else.
“That’s when we figured out our spacing and the plays that were going to get us open shots,” Gafford said. “He was penetrating the defense and finding guys on the perimeter. They’re a team that kind of pre-rotates to the corner, so we were finding guys on the wings and just making them move throughout the game.”
The effect rippled outward.
“It helps us all because now we’re seeing shots go in,” Gafford said. “That gravity pulls defenders away from the rest of us and gives us chances to make plays when the ball isn’t in their hands.”
“I thought our bench was really good,” Kidd said. “Klay was really good and Khris was really good. That group coming off the bench kept us in the ballgame and gave us an opportunity.”
Thompson wasn’t overthinking it.
“Just taking what the defense gives me,” he said. “I got a couple of open looks from my teammates and got into a little rhythm. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough, but it’s always fun to shoot the ball well.”
Kidd said he had a feeling the second half was coming for Thompson.
“We felt maybe in that first half he missed some shots he normally makes,” Kidd said. “We felt that if he got those same looks in the second half, he’d knock them down. I thought that’s what he did tonight.”
Thompson has been playing some of the best basketball of his time in Dallas down the stretch of this season. He was effusive about what it’s been like to play alongside Middleton.
“Khris is a great player,” Thompson said. “It’s been a joy to play with him. He’s very efficient with everything he does. He’s a great ball handler and a cerebral player. We’re lucky to have him.”
Dallas Mavericks Couldn’t Close
Middleton’s step-back jumper tied it at 97 with just over nine minutes remaining. The Mavericks clawed back from 14 down and had all the momentum. However, then the Hawks’ All-Star, Johnson, took it away. He scored eight of Atlanta’s next 12 points, including a layup off a Daniels assist to make it 99-97, then a 3-pointer at 7:23 that propelled the Hawks up 105-99. With the Mavericks struggling to take care of the ball again, they were suddenly on their heels, but had chances to get it done with numerous empty possessions. Dallas failed to score despite an offensive rebound from Flagg, then Johnson later blocked Gafford’s layup in transition. The Mavericks had chances, but weren’t capitalizing.
Atlanta kept making timely plays. When Johnson split a pair of free throws at 6:09 to push it to 109-101, the Mavericks’ window was closing. Thompson gave Dallas its best chance by making a 3-pointer to cut it to five, but the Hawks had another answer every time. Onyeka Okongwu made a 3-pointer at 5:03 to push the Hawks up 112-104. Alexander-Walker followed it up with back-to-back 3-pointers on assists by Daniels and Johnson, propelling Atlanta’s lead to 122-108.
Dallas was outscored 29-21 in the fourth quarter.
“They took advantage of our defense at the top of the floor,” Kidd said. “That play, we just couldn’t guard it. And then we started to guard it, and we couldn’t get the rebound. The offensive rebounds hurt us. We can’t give up that many. And then transition defense — we’ve got to be better. That was not very good tonight.”
Gafford felt there were miscommunications in pivotal moments down the stretch, but he didn’t rule out a lack of effort in key moments as a possible issue.
“It could be miscommunication, it could be lack of effort — it could be all of the above if we’re being honest,” he said. “A lot of things kind of progressed throughout the possessions. We’d go down and score, then they’d come down and hit a three. We’d score again, then they’d get a layup and an and-one. It was just a lot of stuff that tied into it.”
When discussing the importance of late-game communication, Gafford emphasized that this group can get through these challenges if they stick together.
“It’s huge, especially in crunch time,” Gafford said. “The last five minutes of the fourth quarter — that’s when our communication has to be elite. We’ve got to make sure our defensive game plan is top-tier. We’ve got to be dang near perfect when it comes to coverages and knowing who’s on the floor. And sticking together is the main thing. There’s going to be frustration, but as long as we stick together we can make it through anything.”
The Mavericks finished with 14 turnovers compared to just nine for Atlanta. Dallas was coming off a 19-turnover outing in Toronto on Sunday. The Hawks — like the Raptors — emphasized taking the ball out of Flagg’s hands with aggressive schemes, using a mix of full-court pressure and an elite on-ball defender staying attached. The Mavericks tried a few different strategies to mix it up, including having Flagg serve as a decoy back-screener in Stack pick-and-roll and emphasizing actions to create size mismatches for him to attack in the post, but no clear formula has been found.
Similar to the Mavericks’ loss in Toronto, Kidd had foreshadowed the main issue before the opening tip.
“This team’s very similar to Toronto when you talk about pressing, deflections, steals, and then turning those into points,” he said. “They’re the No. 1 fast-break team in the league. We have to take care of the ball. Not just Daniels — you can always focus on him because he seems to be everywhere — but they’ve got multiple guys who can get deflections and steals, and then they get out and run with the best of them.”
After the game, Gafford also emphasized how important it is to be careful against a Hawks team that thrives on forcing turnovers.
“You’ve got Jalen Johnson having a great year right now, and then you’ve got Daniels out there — some of the best guys at stealing the ball in the league,” he said. “We just had to kind of calm ourselves down.”
Thompson feels the Mavericks cannot be fairly evaluated yet, given they haven’t played with Irving this season and have had Lively for only seven games.
“Our team is young and a relatively new group together,” he said. “We’re obviously missing some great players like Kyrie and D-Live, so it’s tough because we haven’t been whole. It’s hard to really say until we are whole.”
Cooper Flagg vs. Dyson Daniels
For the 53rd time this season — once for every game he’s played — Cooper Flagg was the subject of a pregame question for the opposing coach. Quin Snyder answered it like someone who had watched a lot of Duke film.
“I still get a chance to catch a lot of Duke games, and I have a really good relationship with Jon Scheyer,” Snyder said. “You can see the way that the NBA competition has helped him — the handling, the passing. Competitiveness has manifested itself in many ways. He’s a special player, and he’s just getting started.”
Daniels made Flagg’s night miserable from the start. He picked his pocket in the first quarter, contested every shot, and deflected passes all night. Flagg finished with 14 points on 6-of-16 shooting — and that only tells part of the story. Daniels also had 14 points and 10 assists on the other end, doing damage by getting downhill and finding his teammates as Dallas often tried to cross-match a center onto him.
Kidd wasn’t surprised.
“Daniels is one of the best defenders in this league,” Kidd said. “His pressure and his hands — he’s got great hands. He studies the opponent and just tries to make things difficult. He’s not going to win every possession, but he’s consistent with his pressure, and he competes at a high level. A lot of those steals he comes up with. For that, I think it was a great test for Cooper, but also for everyone else on the floor.”
Flagg has handled every test this season the same way, with his head down and by competing. Since returning to the lineup in Orlando after an eight-game absence caused by a left midfoot sprain, his presence provided clarity after the Mavericks struggled to score without him. However, the rookie has yet to find his rhythm. Since returning to the lineup, he’s averaged 16.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 5.3 assists over four games, while shooting 34.6% from the floor, 25.0% from the perimeter, and turning it over 2.8 times per contest. Flagg, who is averaging 20.1 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.2 assists this season, has yet to recover his production to typical levels.
“It helped tremendously getting him back,” Thompson said. “Coop is going to be a superstar in this league. It’s a pleasure to be his teammate. And I’m excited to tell future generations I got to play with him in his rookie season.”
When Kidd was asked what he’s seen improve most in Flagg’s game since the start of the season, his answer was more about character than skill.
“Just understanding what it’s all about — being a pro and going against the best players in the world,” Kidd said. “Being able to handle that. He does that with class. Right now, coming back from injury, I think he’s just getting his legs back and starting to play at the level that we need him to play at.”
Kidd has emphasized the impact Flagg makes beyond the box score throughout the season, highlighting the energy, the enthusiasm, and the way he carries himself, even when the team is down 30.
“At the age of 19, he’s very mature,” Kidd said. “He understands his surroundings, what’s going on. Everything for him is to learn, to be able to control your emotions when you’re playing big games. The biggest thing is the love of the game. When I say this, it’s not when he’s playing — it’s when he’s cheering on his teammates. Some might do it quietly, but he does it no matter if we’re up 30 or down 30. He’s all about his team. That’s something to see as a leader at the age of 19 to have that in the DNA. That will only lead to being a champion in this league because other players are going to want to play with you.”
After the longest layoff of his NBA career, Flagg is just happy to be out there competing with his teammates.
“The hardest part is not playing,” he said. “I love to compete, and I love to play basketball. I’ve gotten a different perspective since I was out.”
What’s Next for Dallas Mavericks
The six-game road trip ends Thursday when Dallas visits Memphis. The Mavericks return home for a single day before heading back out for two more road games.
Kidd made it clear Tuesday night that tinkering was just the beginning. The Mavericks have 18 games left — 18 games to sort through rotations, test lineup combinations, and figure out which pieces fit around Flagg heading into next season.
“We have 18 games left to look at different combinations,” Kidd said. “We’ll start that tonight.”
Thompson said his own mindset for the final stretch is simple.
“Just having fun with the game and trying to finish the year as strong as I possibly can,” he said. “Try to build some momentum going into the summer and stay in great shape. I’ve got big goals in my career, so just staying positive and finishing the year strong.”
The Hawks improved to 34-31 and have won seven straight — the franchise’s longest winning streak since a pair of seven-game runs during the 2021-22 season. Six of those wins have come at home as Atlanta pushes for a top-six seed in the East. For Dallas, the rebuild rolls on.
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