Mavericks-76ers Grades: Master Class

Nov 13, 2014; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Tyson Chandler (6) dunks against the Philadelphia 76ers at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

. 70. 93. 123. 79

The Dallas Mavericks demolished the hapless Philadelphia 76ers last night, 123-70. They set franchise records for biggest margin of victory (53), and biggest leads at the end of the first quarter (28) and first half (44). The 73 points they scored by halftime would have been enough to win the game. Given the Mavs’ proclivity for letting teams get back into the game after building big leads, it was encouraging to see them keep the pressure up in the second half and maintain a healthy lead throughout the entire game. This let them get Dirk, Tyson and the rest of the starters some rest, saving them for games where the outcome is in question. For such a dominant game, there were still a couple of trends that could be a problem against stiffer competition. Here are the player grades from one of the more one-sided games we’re going to see this year:

A+. This was the perfect game for Dirk at this stage of his career. He had another very efficient outing, as he was nearly perfect from the field (7-8) en route to 21 points. He also threw in 3 rebounds and 4 assists. Perhaps most importantly, he was able to sit after only 21 minutes, keeping those legs fresh for the rest of the season.. PF. Dallas Mavericks. DIRK NOWITZKI

A. Parsons shot well from the field and hit 2-5 from three, which was encouraging to see after his earlier drought from downtown. His ability to hit the three will be crucial to spacing the floor for the dozens of pick-and-rolls the team runs. He did more than just score, contributing 6 boards and 3 assists in only 28 minutes, the kind of all-around game the team was hoping for when they signed him this offseason .. SF. Dallas Mavericks. CHANDLER PARSONS

C. Jameer continues to struggle, one of the few dark spots in an otherwise stellar game. He went 0-6 from the field and missed all four from deep. If he can’t stretch the floor with his shooting ability, it’s not clear what he brings to the table that other players can’t do better. His play so far has left the door open for someone else to claim the non-Devin Harris minutes at point guard.. PG. Dallas Mavericks. JAMEER NELSON

. Dallas Mavericks. BENCH . B. Harris and Wright continue to hold down the bench unit, consistently producing at a high level. JJ Barea has performed better than many people expected so far, and racked up 11 assists tonight. The real area of concern is where the three point shooting is going to come from on a nightly basis. The guys probably had a quicker trigger since the game was such a blowout, but Crowder and Aminu combined to go 2-8 from deep. Their defense will be important, but their contributions will be hindered if they can’t pose a threat on the offensive end. Charlie V. actually looked decent in garbage minutes, and Richard Jefferson looked better than he has in most other games. Carlisle still has a lot to figure out beyond the Wright-Harris combo, and no one is really stepping up to make a claim to those minutes, aside from maybe Barea.

. . PHILADELPHIA 76ERS. F. The Sixers have made no secret of the fact that they are tanking, but this game was a complete embarrassment for the team. It’s hard to see anything positive they can take from the game, even in terms of player development, and games like this show that there is a very real cost, on a game to game basis, to tanking a season.

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