SUMMARY
- The Dallas Mavericks have been doing well over the final stretch of this season.
- The team has avoided the play-in tournament and secured a guaranteed spot in the postseason.
Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, and the Dallas Mavericks have finally clinched a spot in the playoffs and have begun the process of disproving all doubters and critics. As most NBA fans should be able to remember, Kyrie joined the Mavs towards the end of last season. However, the team failed to secure the 10th seed and were eliminated from playoff contention before the postseason even began.
The Mavs had a rough start to this season as well. They held a record of 10 wins and 11 losses in the first 21 games of the season. Had this trend continued, the team would have missed the postseason once again given the competitiveness of the Western Conference. Now that the Mavs have clinched a playoff spot and will not have to participate in the play-in tournament, fans might want to know more about their success this season.
The Dallas Mavericks have been one of the best teams in the NBA since the trade deadline
Since the team was not doing as well as expected heading into the trade deadline, the Mavericks traded away Grant Williams and Seth Curry in order to bring on PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford onto their roster. This decision might have been the best trade deadline move that any team across the league made.
Even if the Dallas Mavericks lose their remaining games, there is no chance for them to fall down to the 7th seed and become a part of the play-in tournament. Now that their spot for the postseason has been confirmed, one might wonder what their playoff push this season could look like.
Who are the Mavs likely to face in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs?
Since most of the teams in the Western Conference still have a couple of games left in the regular season and have similar records, the standings could change quite drastically. Under the assumption that the Mavs are able to hold onto the 5th seed, they will be facing the 4th seeded Los Angeles Clippers. Considering that both of these teams have met in the playoffs before, this is expected to be quite an exciting matchup.