Mavericks Trust Offensive Blueprint Despite Frigid Shooting In Los Angeles

DHJ Quick Take: Consistency in the Chaos

Identity Over Outcome: Despite a season-low 18.2% from three-point range, the Mavericks maintained the “organized” identity that fueled their win over the Lakers. Dallas committed only nine turnovers and shot a near-perfect 27-of-28 from the free-throw line, proving the structural improvements under Jason Kidd are sticking.

Missing Connective Tissue: The absence of secondary playmakers Naji Marshall (hip) and Brandon Williams (illness) was felt. While Cooper Flagg and Marvin Bagley III (21 points) kept the pressure on the rim, the “humming” ball movement seen on Sunday slowed without the veteran versatilely of P.J. Washington and Marshall.

The “Bunny” Factor: Kidd and Flagg both noted that the shot quality remained high, with the team simply missing “bunnies” and open looks that fell during their 134-point outburst against the Lakers. For a team in a rebuild, trusting the process on a 6-of-33 night from deep is the ultimate developmental litmus test.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The Dallas Mavericks shot 35.0% from the field and 18.2% from 3-point range in Tuesday’s 116-103 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. The numbers look ugly. The process, according to those inside the locker room, tells a different story.

Dallas committed just 9 turnovers, went 27-of-28 from the free throw line, grabbed 15 offensive rebounds, generated 23 fast-break points, and put up 44 points in the paint. The Mavericks got the looks they wanted. They simply did not convert them.

“We created a lot of good looks offensively from three and in the paint,” head coach Jason Kidd told Dallas Hoops Journal. “We just missed some bunnies tonight that we made in the last game.”

The Same Ingredients, Different Results

That last game — a 134-128 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday — featured the most complete offensive performance Dallas has put together all season. The Mavericks committed just 7 turnovers, went 14-of-32 from 3-point range, generated 24 fast-break points, and did not turn the ball over once in the fourth quarter. They scored 134 points on 52.3% shooting against a playoff-bound roster in front of a sellout crowd at American Airlines Center.

The ingredients on Tuesday against the Clippers were nearly identical. The results were not.

“I think we’re taking care of the ball at a high level and getting a lot of good looks,” Kidd told Dallas Hoops Journal. “In the Lakers game, we were making them. Again, different group out there — it seems like every night. We didn’t have PJ, Gaff, or B-Will tonight, so it’s next-man-up. We created a lot of good looks offensively from three and in the paint. We just missed some bunnies tonight that we made in the last game. But again, they’re taking care of the ball. The process is there — if we take care of it, we can get a good look.”

The ball security has been a point of emphasis for weeks. Kidd had pointed to it after Sunday’s win as the foundation on which everything else is built.

“I think we’re getting a little bit better at taking care of the ball,” Kidd told Dallas Hoops Journal on Sunday. “When we do take care of the ball, we get good looks. Tonight’s another example of that.”

Cooper Flagg and Jason Kidd Approve of the Process

Cooper Flagg went 9-of-25 from the field Tuesday after back-to-back massive performances over the weekend — 51 points against the Orlando Magic on Friday and 45 against the Lakers on Sunday, making him the second rookie since the NBA/ABA merger to record consecutive 40-point games. He echoed his coach’s read on the process.

“I thought it was solid,” Flagg told Dallas Hoops Journal. “Like Coach said, we missed a lot of easy looks that usually fall. But those are the shots we want to get, so for the most part, I think it was pretty solid.”

Kidd pointed to Flagg’s shot selection as something that was not far off from his recent outings — just without the results.

“I think he got some of the same looks — they just didn’t go down for him,” Kidd said. “Some of the floaters he had opportunities to make were right there — just hit the rim and fell off. That’s part of the game. But he kept attacking. Looking at it, we didn’t shoot the ball very well, but the score was still close. We were down six and had an opportunity there.”

Against the Lakers, Flagg had framed the offensive approach as a deliberate choice built around pace and organization.

“We wanted to play with great pace and get up the floor really fast, just to keep the rhythm in our favor,” Flagg told Dallas Hoops Journal Sunday. “It’s something I always come back to when we have a better offensive game — we’re organized. When guys are on the same page, it looks a lot better out there.”

That same structure was present on Tuesday, and the discipline that defined Sunday’s victory remained intact even as the shots refused to fall.

The Connective Tissue Was Missing

Marvin Bagley III posted 21 points and 9 rebounds in his return from injury and was one of the few Mavericks to convert at a high rate Tuesday, going 8-of-11 from the field. He credited execution and decision-making for his own output and framed the team’s collective approach similarly.

“Just making the right decisions and playing together,” Bagley told Dallas Hoops Journal. “Doing what we talk about and what we see on film, and going out there and executing it. For me, it’s big to play a part in that and help in that aspect. It’s just about doing what we talk about.”

Bagley also pointed to Dallas’s 15 offensive rebounds as evidence of the fight that remained even when the primary looks dried up.

“Getting those hustle plays and offensive rebounds can lead to kick-out threes or putbacks — that’s big for the team,” Bagley said. “It shows our effort and our want. Sometimes the games don’t go our way, but the process and the fight — like tonight — that’s what you can ask for.”

The gap between Sunday and Tuesday came down to more than shots falling. Against the Lakers, Naji Marshall finished with 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists, while Brandon Williams added 13 points, 5 assists, and 2 steals as secondary playmakers who kept the offense organized when Flagg needed a breather. Both were unavailable Tuesday — Marshall exited with a hip contusion in the fourth quarter, and Williams was inactive — leaving Dallas thinner in the connective-tissue roles that made Sunday’s performance click.

P.J. Washington, who had returned from a right plantar fascia strain Sunday and knocked in 3 three-pointers off Flagg’s assists in consecutive third-quarter possessions to stabilize Dallas’s lead, also sat out Tuesday with left elbow soreness. After Sunday’s win, Washington had credited the collective rhythm as the engine behind everything.

“We did a good job of bringing who we wanted into the pick-and-roll and letting Cooper kind of do his thing,” Washington told Dallas Hoops Journal. “He made the right reads on pretty much every possession. We passed the ball, we got good shots, we hit. The ball was humming, and I just felt like everybody had a great game and we just played together.”

That humming was absent on Tuesday. Kidd acknowledged as much when reflecting on what made Sunday work.

“Brandon Williams — we’ve been talking about him running the team — he’s been doing a great job,” Kidd told Dallas Hoops Journal. “I think Naji also loves playing the point guard position, so being able to play through him and for him to get us organized has been great. And then again, Cooper handling the ball down stretches has been good for us, too.”

An Open Look That Didn’t Go Down

The Mavericks went 6-of-33 from 3-point range Tuesday and still kept the game within reach deep into the second half — a testament to how consistently Dallas generated quality looks even on one of its worst shooting nights of the season. Dallas trailed by just 6 points at one stage with a wide-open 3-pointer in front of them.

“Down six, we had a wide-open look and just couldn’t knock one down,” Kidd said. “They were open tonight for us.”

Flagg offered a similarly clear-eyed assessment of a night where the process held, but the production did not.

“How did you view the offensive process tonight?” he was asked.

“I thought it was solid,” Flagg told Dallas Hoops Journal. “Like Coach said, we missed a lot of easy looks that usually fall. But those are the shots we want to get, so for the most part, I think it was pretty solid.”

Bagley, who has experienced enough NBA seasons to understand the randomness of shooting nights, kept the larger picture in focus.

“Just shooting the shots that come to me,” Bagley said. “I work on my shot and trust my work. I shoot what the defense gives — being able to pop and space the floor helps the team. I have confidence in my shot, I don’t hesitate, and I just let it fly. That’s been my mindset since I’ve been here, and the coaches want me to shoot them.”

The foundation Kidd has emphasized all season — protecting the ball, getting to the line, generating quality looks — held up even on a night when the shots did not fall. Dallas’s 9 turnovers were well below its season average, and the 27-of-28 performance from the free throw line was nearly perfect. Over consecutive games, the Mavericks have shown they can build and sustain an offensive identity worth believing in. On Sunday, it produced a historic result. On Tuesday, it produced a loss — but not a reason to abandon what is clearly working.

The Mavericks continue their three-game road trip Wednesday against the Phoenix Suns at 9 p.m. CT at the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix.