Dallas Mavericks: Dennis Smith Jr. chips tooth, clinches game vs. Clippers

Dallas Mavericks point guard Dennis Smith Jr. had a memorable performance against the LA Clippers on Dec. 2 that involved highs and lows.

The Dallas Mavericks defeated the LA Clippers 114-110 on Sunday evening. It was a hard fought victory for the Mavs who continued their outstanding play at home this season.

The victory was made more impressive by the fact that Luka Doncic, Dirk Nowitzki, and Maxi Kleber all did not play due to injury. It forced some other players to step up, and they did not disappoint.

Harrison Barnes continued his stretch of fantastic play by dropping 30 points and nine rebounds on Sunday. J.J. Barea also scored 24 points off the bench and sparked a Mavs run.

Dennis Smith Jr. produced in the clutch, though. He had a block on Tobias Harris in the final seconds and the game clinching free throws. Check out the swat here courtesy of the Mavs official Twitter.

Coach Carlisle loved it. Here is what he had to say after the game, thanks to Eddie Sefko.

DSJ gets tooth knocked out

It was not all sunshine and rainbows for the Mavericks point guard, though. There was a scramble for the ball in third period that saw Clippers guard Patrick Beverly elbow Smith Jr. and his tooth went flying. Here are the subsequent moments via the Mavs official account.

The injury should not be anything to worry about. DSJ obviously came back in and finished the game. He even had the tooth back in during the postgame presser. That led to an interesting question and answer exchange which fans can read below courtesy of Dwain Price.

Smith Jr. is trying to compete with Dirk for funniest player on the Mavs. The second year point guard played with impressive grit and competitiveness. Hopefully, this game sparks a run for DSJ, and he continues to expand his play.

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