Mavericks have found the Thunder’s kryptonite, and OKC should be terrified

In a game that head coach Jason Kidd called "maybe the best win of the season," the Dallas Mavericks took on the tide of plenty of tough runs from the Western Conference's first-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night, but the Mavericks had a different level of poise and physicality in the contest despite being short-handed as ever.

Everyone who was available to play for the Mavericks registered some clock in this contest besides Jazian Gortman, as Dallas was missing seven players due to injury in this contest. Given the Mavericks' recent clutch woes as well as the fact that they had to go to the complete end of their rotation to win this game, this was easily the most impressive victory of the season from the Mavericks, even if the Thunder were on the second night of back-to-back themselves as well.

It's well known that these two teams are going to have increased physicality any time they match up against each other, and this is definitely one of the more budding rivalries in the NBA after last season's Western Conference Semifinals. Everyone on the Mavericks seems to crank it up a notch whenever they face OKC, evidenced by performances like Spencer Dinwiddie's 28 points on 11-14 shooting last night, as Dinwiddie had only breached the 25-point mark one other time this entire season.

P.J. Washington also had a dominant 22 points, 19 rebounds (career high), three steals, and two blocks in this contest, as it's well known that Washington stands on business every time he matches up against the Thunder, which seems to be something that his teammates carry over from a mentality perspective.

Mavs bring elite physicality against the Thunder and get in their head

More importantly though, only five other teams in the entire NBA have been able to beat the Thunder this season, but the Mavericks have managed to knock the Thunder off three times with superstar Luka Doncic missing each of those contests. This simply doesn't add up based on how good the Thunder have been this season, even if it's apparent that Dallas cranks their intensity up a little when they play OKC.

The only explanation for this is that the Mavericks simply have the Thunder's number, as the Mavericks aren't rattled by how dynamic the Thunder's roster is and go out and play their brand of basketball every time they match up with OKC. Dallas also plays far more physically compared to a lot of other NBA teams, which is something that a younger OKC squad may not be as flexible to adjust to until they add some more muscle across their roster.

There has definitely been a flurry of players missing from both teams in all four of Dallas' games against the Thunder this season, and Chet Holmgren hasn't played in any of the games. However, Dallas' 3-1 record against the best team in the West is something that the Mavericks can hang their hat on, as they found tough and different ways to win in each of those contests.

Going forward, if the Mavericks were to reface OKC in a playoff series, it'd be remiss to say the Mavericks don't have a chance at winning the series even if Dallas doesn't come into the playoffs as strong as they did last season, as it's becoming readily apparent that the Mavericks are OKC's kryptonite.

The Mavericks have made the Thunder uncomfortable and have caused them to lose poise in crucial moments over the last two seasons time and time again, and Lu Dort getting ejected for hitting Daniel Gafford in the groin area during the third quarter of last night's game is a microcosm of that. The Thunder very well have the talent to beat this Mavericks team if Dallas doesn't upgrade their roster whatsoever, but the Mavericks are clearly in the Thunder's head, which gives them a chance in any game with them.