OKLAHOMA CITY — The Mavericks accomplished a feat Sunday night that they’d failed to manage in four other tries this season.
They won a game without Luka Doncic.
The 103-84 victory over the building Oklahoma City Thunder, now 10 games below .500 at 8-18, perhaps didn’t offer the best litmus for Dallas’ overall progress, with or without their leading superstar.
But, a strong effort from the bench, and steady contributions from spot starter Jalen Brunson (18 points, nine rebounds, three assists) and Kristaps Porzingis (13 points, seven rebounds and three assists) helped the team thrive in the paint to overcome another slump in 3-point shooting.
The Mavericks finished their three-game road trip at 2-1 to boost their record back to .500 (13-13) after losing nine of their previous 12 games entering Sunday’s finale.
Doncic will be back in his customary inactive spot, at the end of the bench next to close friend Boban Marjanovic, on Monday against Charlotte, too.
Coach Jason Kidd said before the game Doncic will miss at least the next two games after retwisting his ankle Friday night in Indiana. Dallas will re-evaluate the 22-year-old All-Star before determining his status for Wednesday’s home contest against the Lakers.
Doncic was working out on an elliptical in the bowels of Paycom Center when Kidd gave the latest update on his superstar who’s played through left ankle and knee pain since spraining both Nov. 15.
The Mavericks didn’t appear fazed during their fifth outing sans-Doncic.
After all, Doncic missed two of their three matchups against Oklahoma City last season.
Then, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault noticed the Mavericks’ reserve point guards Jalen Brunson and Trey Burke often pushed the Mavericks’ pace and capitalized more on opportunities to play offense in transition.
Their tendencies, Daigneault warned his Thunder team before this game, were less methodical and deliberate than Doncic’s typical ball-handling approach.
“I don’t say that as an indictment on [Doncic],” Daigneault said. “He’s a really good player that is a dilemma the minute he crosses half-court with the ball, and they make you deal with him, and they should because he’s hard to deal with.
“When you remove that from the equation, they have to rely on other ways to gain advantages.”
It didn’t take long for the Mavericks to do so Sunday.
They opened on a 7-0 run and led by as many as 11 in the first half, including by 10 (56-46) at halftime. They shot 4 of 9 from three in the first quarter, tying the number of 3-pointers they made in the entire loss to Indiana — in 20 fewer attempts.
Though their 3-point production slowed afterward — they finished 9 of 33 (27.3%) in the game — and neither team scored a fast-break point, the Mavericks thrived down low.
They outscored the Thunder 50-20 in the paint.
Moses Brown tallied 15 points (5 of 6 from the field), six rebounds, two blocks and one steal in 20 minutes off the bench in his return to Oklahoma City, where he posted several gaudy stat lines with the Thunder last year. Maxi Kleber led reserves with 16 points and seven rebounds as Dallas’ bench outscored the Thunder’s 54-29.
Regardless of competition level, the Mavericks were happy to capitalize after four tough losses without Doncic.
They lost fourth-quarter leads in consecutive games against the red-hot Suns in mid-November and then dropped another against the playoff nemesis Clippers.
Their losing skid worsened Dec. 4 when they never led and trailed the Grizzlies by as many as 17 points without Doncic and Porzingis.
But Sunday, they ended by emptying the bench for a few minutes of extra rest before flying home to cap their latest back to back.
Brown practicing: Sterling Brown missed his fourth consecutive game because of left foot soreness, but he returned to practice this week and worked out with timed cross-court runs and shooting before the game Sunday.
“Hopefully he’s back” Monday against Charlotte, Kidd said.
Willie Cauley-Stein (personal reasons) remained away from the team in the road-trip finale, missing his eighth consecutive game.
