3 keys for Dallas Mavericks to defeat the Utah Jazz in potential playoff preview

Key to Dallas Mavericks defeating Utah Jazz: 1. Get Rudy away from the basket

Rudy Gobert is one of the best defenders in the league and the key to Utah’s unit. He covers for mistakes on the perimeter and forces misses maybe better than any other player. Fans saw him get three key stops against Luka Doncic in the final three minutes of the Jazz’s Feb. 25 win over the Mavs.

Dallas needs to force Gobert to guard on the perimeter if they want to win on Sunday night. Luka Doncic get Rudy to switch onto him several times throughout the night, and the Mavericks need to kick to their secondary ball-handler and let him attack the paint. If Gobert is on Luka, he will not be able to crash inside and create havoc. Dallas needs to force Utah’s center to make difficult decisions. If he leaves Luka to guard the rim, kick it back to Doncic and let him create or take an open shot.

The Dallas Mavericks want to make it a shootout on March 27. Utah is going to fire a ton of threes and try to keep Rudy Gobert as a deterrent at the rim. If the Mavs can force misses and get the 7’1 center onto the perimeter, they should walk away with the crucial win as long as superstar Luka Doncic continues his brilliance.

Fans will not want to miss Sunday’s game between the Mavericks and Jazz and be sure to check back to The Smoking Cuban after the contest for plenty more.