With the All-Star break Weekend already behind them, the Denver Nuggets return to action taking on the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center looking for their first win away from home since February 2.
Although they have won two straight, this will be the Nuggets’ first road game since their three-game losing streak between February 4 and 8, when they lost away from home to the Detroit Pistons, Brooklyn Nets, and Philadelphia 76ers.
To recover their mojo on the road the Nuggets need to improve their play on the defensive side of the floor, especially their three-point defense, which has gotten somewhat shaky in recent games.
Gary Harris is expected to return to the lineup for this game, and if he starts that would be just the third time this season that the Nuggets have put their originally intended starting five on the floor.
For the Mavericks Luka Doncic will need to step up after the team traded away their second, third, fourth and fifth leading scorers to acquire the injured Kristaps Porzingis from the New York Knicks.
First and foremost, the Nuggets must figure a way to neutralize Doncic, but they also need to watch out for the Mavs’ three-point shooting as they are sinking about 35 percent from beyond the arc and have improved as of late in that regard.
Dallas shoots about 40 threes per game and in their last seven games, they’re making about 14 of those. Doncic and the recently acquired Tim Hardaway Jr., are likely to be the main threats from three-point range, so the Nuggets must find a way to extend and bolster their defense near the arc.
The Mavericks are still finding themselves after the Porzingis trade, as they haven’t played a lot of games together and consequently, it looks like they lack the chemistry needed to beat the Nuggets.
Despite this, Denver can’t be overly cautious and must also watch out for the Mavs pick-and-roll if they intend to prove that they can leave behind their recent road woes.
