Big Win! Jokic with 10+2, Murray's Heroics, Westbrook 3/11, Irving Struggles, Western No. 5 Changes Hands

Big Win! Jokic with 10+2, Murray's Heroics, Westbrook 3/11, Irving Struggles, Western No. 5 Changes Hands

On January 15th, Beijing time, the Mavericks played against the Nuggets at home, and the game ended with the Mavericks losing to the Nuggets 99-118. The Mavericks had just played a game against the Nuggets, where they were ultimately reversed, but they still showed their abilities in the game. Now that the two teams met again, Irving returned to the game, so the Mavericks were hopeful of avenging the Nuggets. Moreover, this game was very important for the Mavericks. If the Mavericks continued to lose to the Nuggets, the win difference between the Mavericks and the Nuggets would continue to widen, with the Nuggets currently leading the Mavericks by 1.5 wins. The starting lineup for the Mavericks in this game was: Irving, Clay, Marshall, Washington, and Levli, while the Nuggets' starting lineup was: Westbrook, Murray, Braun, Porter, and Jokic.

In the first quarter, the Nuggets made an 11-4 run, followed by Gafford scoring to stop the bleeding. However, the Mavericks performed poorly in the subsequent game, with Murray hitting a three-pointer and Porter also making a shot, giving the Nuggets a 10-point lead. After a timeout, Westbrook hit a three-pointer, and Ding Wei Di scored to stop the bleeding. In the following game, Murray and Porter continued to score, slowly extending the Nuggets' lead to 15 points. At the end of the period, Ding Wei Di made a 2+1 to stop the bleeding, Jokic scored with a shot, and then Murray helped the Nuggets fend off the Mavericks' counterattack, ending the first quarter with the Nuggets leading by 15 points. In the second quarter, Xiao Jordan and Gordon continued to help the Nuggets expand their lead. At a critical moment, Clay hit a three-pointer to stop the bleeding. In the subsequent game, the Nuggets responded, but Glaimes and Irving hit three-pointers, and when it seemed like the Mavericks were finally closing the gap, Murray quickly hit a three-pointer as well. After Ding Wei Di hit a three-pointer, Porter also hit a three-pointer, and in the final moments, Clay hit a three-pointer, ending the half with the Mavericks trailing by 26 points.

In the third quarter, Jokic and Murray continued to score, with Clay scoring with a layup to stop the bleeding, and Jokic scoring with free throws to stop the bleeding. Although Clay later hit a floater over Jokic, Westbrook soon made a mid-range shot, and after Irving was blocked, Westbrook caused Clay to foul and made 2 out of 2 free throws. Later, Washington scored in a counterattack, and the Mavericks still trailed by 26 points. After a timeout, Murray scored with a layup, followed by Irving also scoring with a layup. Later, Westbrook stole the ball and Braun scored under the basket. After Gafford scored with free throws, Porter hit a three-pointer, and in the following game, Gafford continued to score, ending the third quarter with the Nuggets leading by 24 points. In the fourth quarter, the Mavericks made a 10-2 run, and after Hadi scored, the Mavericks once closed the gap to 14 points. However, in the subsequent game, the Nuggets made a 7-0 run to extend their lead to 21 points again. After a timeout, Murray continued to hit three-pointers, and the Nuggets maintained a big lead. Seeing this situation, both teams replaced their main players, and the Nuggets eventually won a big victory over the Mavericks.

Murray was in great form in this game, and not long after the start of the game, Murray showed an explosive performance. In the subsequent game, the Mavericks could not stop Murray's play at all. It can be said that when Murray can perform like this in the game, it is significant for the Nuggets. At the end of the game, Murray made 18 out of 26 shots, scoring 45 points, 2 rebounds, and 6 assists. Because Murray performed excellently in this game, Jokic played exceptionally relaxed in the game, ending the game with 7 out of 4 shots, scoring 10 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists, and 2 steals. On the other hand, Westbrook had poor offensive form in this game, ending the game with 3 out of 11 shots, scoring 9 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists.

In this game, Irving returned but played very poorly, ending the game with 4 out of 18 shots, scoring 11 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists. When Irving played poorly in the game, other Maverick players did not step up either. At the same time, in this game, Levli sprained his ankle while grabbing rebounds, and at the end of the game, Clay made 3 out of 8 shots, scoring 8 points and 3 rebounds, Washington made 2 out of 10 shots, scoring 5 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists, and Marshall scored 11 points, 2 rebounds, and 4 assists. It can be said that when the Mavericks were in a low overall state, they really deserved to lose the game. After the Mavericks lost the game, the fifth place in the West changed hands. After this game, the Clippers rose to fifth place in the West, while the Mavericks dropped to sixth place.