The Smoking Cuban
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Dallas Mavericks Seeking Double-Digit Wins Tonight

By Kohl Rast

SACRAMENTO, CA - APRIL 4: Devin Harris #34 of the Dallas Mavericks looks on during the game against the Sacramento Kings on April 4, 2017 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images)
SACRAMENTO, CA - APRIL 4: Devin Harris #34 of the Dallas Mavericks looks on during the game against the Sacramento Kings on April 4, 2017 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The Dallas Mavericks face off against the visiting Toronto Raptors tonight in a post-Christmas matchup. Can the Mavs play tough against yet another playoff team?

The Dallas Mavericks will play the Toronto Raptors for the first time this season and it will likely be a tough matchup top to bottom. Toronto is a good team who may even be overachieving so far this season. The Raptors are on a 6-game win streak right now and are led by one of the better pure scorers in the league, DeMar DeRozan. DeRozan is averaging nearly 25 points per game right now and does not appear to be slowing down any time soon.

Toronto also has some great players surrounding DeRozan, like Kyle Lowry, Serge Ibaka, and Jonas Valanciunas. All of these guys make for some tough matchups across the board, but the Mavs are ready for the challenge.

We can only assume that the Mavs will go with the usual starting lineup of Dennis Smith Jr., Wesley Matthews, Harrison Barnes, Dirk Nowitzki, and Maxi Kleber. This has been a pretty good lineup for the Mavs lately as they continue to build unity together on the court. That unity will see a different test on the defensive end today.

Two matchups really interest me in the game tonight as I think one will determine the outcome of the game while the other will give the chance of making the Mavs fans happy. The first is the matchup between DeRozan and Matthews. DeRozan is a premier offensive talent and Wes is known to be a lockdown defender. If he can slow down DeMar, it could make the game very winnable.

The second matchup is Dirk Nowitzki and Serge Ibaka. Although Dirk will likely leave the defensive duties to Kleber, Ibaka could very possibly end up guarding Dirk on the other end. The most memorable time these two were matched up against each other is undoubtedly from the 2011 NBA playoffs when Ibaka was playing with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Let’s hope Dirk looks more like that against Serge tonight.

Next: Dallas Mavericks: What it Means to Be an MFFL

The Mavericks and Raptors tip-off tonight a little bit earlier than usual at 6:00 central time. Let’s go Mavs!

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