The Dallas Mavericks (49-32) welcome the Portland Trail Blazers (51-30) to the American Airlines Center to the regular season wraps up. The game gets underway at 8:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Apr. 15 and will air on CSN-NW and FSN-SW.
The Mavericks were beaten by the Jazz 109-92 on Monday. Rajon Rondo played well for Dallas, finishing with 13 points, five assists, and four rebounds. The Trail Blazers, meanwhile, are coming off a 101-90 loss to the Thunder on Monday. Meyers Leonard had a good shooting night, leading the team with 24 points.
Dallas should be expected to protect the ball well in this contest. They rank fourth in the NBA at avoiding errors (turnover percentage of 12.7%). Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers force the fewest turnovers in the league (11.9%).
The Trail Blazers have won two out of three against the Mavericks this season, including a 94-75 blowout in their last matchup. Nicolas Batum played a big role with 15 points and 12 rebounds.
Oddsmakers have deemed this game an even matchup and the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable. The Mavericks enter the game with records of 49-32 Straight Up (SU) and 34-44-3 Against The Spread (ATS). They have gone 28-23 SU and 18-30-3 ATS against teams from the Western Conference. The Mavericks come into the game with the league’s fourth-ranked home scoring offense, averaging 106.4 points per game on their own court. Dallas has been struggling as of late. The Mavericks have given up an average of 111.6 points to opponents in their last 10 games, well over their defense’s season average of 102.4 PPG. Dallas has given up very few turnovers with only an average of 12.5 per game. However, if the other team makes a blunder, the Mavericks have shown that they know how to capitalize. They average 19.3 points off turnovers, making them the second-best team in the league for that category.
On the other side, the Trail Blazers head into the game with records of 40-40-1 ATS and 51-30 SU. In Western Conference games, Portland has gone 31-20 SU and 26-24-1 ATS. Portland is the top foul-shooting team in the league, converting .800 of their shots from the line. Portland is one of the better rebounding teams in the NBA. The Trail Blazers average 45.9 rebounds per game, making them the second-best team in the league for that category.
Following the Trail Blazers’ latest win over Dallas, Portland is still behind in the head-to-head record over the past 10 meetings, 4-6 SU. Additionally, the Mavericks lead the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3. Portland held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers four times in the last 10, while Dallas wasn’t able to do so in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – POR, ATS Winner – POR
Notes
On average, Portland puts up 102.8 points per game (ranked ninth). Dallas ranks 25th in points allowed per game with 102.4.
Portland scores an average of 101.6 points per away game (ranked ninth). Dallas ranks 27th in points allowed per home game with 102.5.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the Portland Trail Blazers are an outstanding 40-8. In games where they score fewer than 100 points, the Dallas Mavericks have a poor record of 8-19.
The Portland Trail Blazers have a losing 11-22 record in games where they have allowed at least 100 points. The Dallas Mavericks are 41-13 when they hit the century mark.
The Mavericks have a defensive rating of 103.9 (ranked 20th), while the Trail Blazers rank eighth for their offensive rating of 105.5.
The Dallas Mavericks have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking sixth in the league with a FG% of 46.3%. When their opponents have a similar or higher FG%, the Portland Trail Blazers are 10-15.
The Portland Trail Blazers rank lower for their field goal percentage (15th) than their effective field goal percentage (eighth), while the Dallas Mavericks rank the same for both metrics (sixth).
On average, the Dallas Mavericks make 22.6 assists per game and the Portland Trail Blazers make 22.0. Dallas is ranked eighth, while Portland is ranked 12th.
Dallas makes an average of 4.5 blocks per game (ranked 19th). Portland ranks higher in blocks with 4.5 (ranked 18th).
The Portland Trail Blazers are the NBA’s best defensive rebounding team. The Dallas Mavericks rank 19th in offensive rebounding.
The Dallas Mavericks make an average of 8.1 steals per game. The Portland Trail Blazers are 27-18 when they allow 8 or more steals.
