5 Most crucial games left for the Dallas Mavericks this season

The Dallas Mavericks opened up the post All-Star break portion of the regular season by getting arguably their most important win of the season versus the Phoenix Suns. Dallas' victory last Thursday night gave the Mavericks the tiebreaker in any scenario where Dallas and Phoenix have the same record in the standings going forward, as the Mavericks won the season series with Phoenix 2-1.

The Mavericks are currently the eighth seed in the Western Conference, but Dallas seems like a likely candidate to make it out of play-in territory given the strength of their remaining schedule. Strength of schedule isn't everything of course, but Dallas has the 11th easiest remaining schedule in the league.

5 Most crucial games left for the Dallas Mavericks this season

On the other hand, the New Orleans Pelicans, Sacramento Kings, and Phoenix Suns are all inside the top 10 of hardest remaining schedules in the league this year. This is extremely noteworthy when you take into consideration that those teams, along with the Mavericks, are only separated by one game through seeds five to eight.

Dallas has put themselves in a position to make a legitimate run in the playoffs even if they can't assume home-court advantage in the first round. They still need to take care of business for the rest of the season, despite riding high on a seven-game win streak that was recently snapped versus Indiana, so here are the Mavericks' five most important games remaining in the season.

5. April 5 game against the Golden State Warriors

The Dallas Mavericks are currently 3.5 games ahead of the tenth seeded Golden State Warriors, but that shouldn't undermine the fact that this late season April contest between Dallas and Golden State could definitely have playoff seeding implications when you take into consideration that the Warriors are on a steep upward trajectory having won eight of their last 10 games.

The Warriors are finally finding stability within their lineup, as Draymond Green has returned from suspension and Klay Thompson has seen improvement after Warriors coach Steve Kerr decided to bring him off the bench. The Warriors' young core of Brandin Podziemski, Trayce Jackson-Davis, and Jonathan Kuminga have thrived on both sides of the ball recently, proving that Golden State still has a viable and deep rotation just like in previous seasons.

Stephen Curry is still playing at an MVP-caliber level despite being set to turn 36-years-old in March, so Dallas can't take this early-April matchup against Golden State lightly, especially since it could be a preview of a potential play-in game between the Mavericks and Warriors.

The Mavericks may have improved odds to make it out of the play-in, but by no means does that mean that there isn't the potential for them to find themselves in seventh or eighth seed come the close of the regular season. The Mavericks need to take care of this Warriors team when April 5 comes, as Dallas can't underestimate the Warriors' ability to go small as a means to remediate Dallas' bigs on defense.

4. March 1 game against the Boston Celtics

The Dallas Mavericks' game on March 1 against the Boston Celtics has the least impact on any playoff seeding implications for the Mavericks out of any of the other games featured on this list. However, the Mavericks need to make a statement at the culmination of their four-game Eastern Conference road trip against Boston, as Dallas was severely out-talented the last time the two teams played in Dallas.

The Mavericks' trade deadline additions will help deal with the Celtics’ length and physicality in the frontcourt, but the Celtics have arguably been the best team in the NBA so far this season and are objectively a better team than the Mavericks at the moment. The Mavericks have to make a stand against Boston on the road, even if they don’t outright win the game. The Mavericks are already off to a bad start on their Eastern Conference road trip with Sunday night’s blowout loss to Indiana, so it’s important Dallas shows that they can compete with some of the NBA’s best post trade deadline.

Dallas exerted too many resources at the trade deadline to get blown out by elite teams, so the Mavericks need to anchor down on defense for the rest of this road trip so they can prove that their seven-game winning streak wasn’t a fluke. The Celtics are dynamic on defense across the board and everyone in their starting lineup has the ability to create offense for themselves.

The Mavericks have some vendettas against the Celtics when you take into consideration that former Mavericks' big man Kristaps Porzingis having a great season for the Celtics and Boston is one of Kyrie Irving's failed former stops. Containing the likes of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown isn't a walk in the park, but Dallas needs to play gritty enough on defense to where fans can see they can compete with teams on the level of the Celtics, as Porzingis didn't even suit up in the first contest between the two teams and Dallas still got blown out.

3. March 17 game versus Denver Nuggets

Anytime Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic face off against each other, the game typically yields a pretty exciting result. Dallas played two games against Denver last season that ended with a one-point margin of victory, but the Mavericks haven't drawn the same kind of luck against the Nuggets this year. However, the Mavericks have a unique opportunity to turn heads in regard to their perception as a championship caliber team if they can beat the Nuggets in decisive fashion.

Nikola Jokic will be presented with a new challenge from Dallas given the increased size in the frontcourt that the Mavericks hauled in during the trade deadline, but not much is stopping a fully optimized Jokic in this Nuggets offense currently. Nuggets coach Michael Malone has implemented a series of actions in the Nuggets' offense that feature a ton of off-ball movement, screening, and cutting, so the Mavericks will need to be fully prepared to stop the potential onslaught of passing from Denver in this contest.

The Nuggets are a likely team that the Mavericks will face in the playoffs in the first two rounds (if Dallas makes it that far) given the Nuggets current positioning at third in the Western Conference with a record of 39-19. The Nuggets starting lineup along with the Murray-Jokic duo is performing as lethal as ever, and Denver has recouped some energy off the bench on defense that was lost with the departure of Bruce Brown, as the likes of Christian Braun and Peyton Watson have proven their worth in Denver's main rotation.

This game will draw a lot of eyeballs given that it is a Sunday matinee game being broadcasted on ABC, so the Mavericks will need to show that they can at least keep up with the 2023 NBA Champions, as it's one of Dallas' toughest and more crucial regular season games left. The Mavericks can hopefully get at least one win in their season-series with Denver in this closing game, as it would assuredly rest some Mavs fans consciouses who are eerie of Luka Doncic potentially leaving to go team up with Nikola Jokic one day.

2. Back-to-back with the Sacramento Kings on March 26 and 29

The Dallas Mavericks don't face any of the aforementioned teams in the current five through eight range in the Western Conference barring the Sacramento Kings in back-to-back games in late March. These two games will both be in Sacramento and will feature a two-day rest in between games after the first matchup on March 26.

The reason for this game's importance are obvious, as it's extremely likely that the Mavericks and King could be jockeying for playoff positioning for the remainder of the regular season. The Kings chose to stand pat at the trade deadline after giving the Golden State Warriors a run for their money in last year's playoffs. While Sacramento hasn't been near as electric as last season, they have gained some momentum offensively as of recent, and Domantas Sabonis is still playing near an MVP level despite not being an All-Star.

The Mavericks lost both of their initial games versus Sacramento earlier this season in Dallas, so the Mavericks have to take care of both of these games versus Sacramento if they even want a chance at holding the tiebreaker between the two squads. The Mavericks will need to be prepared for the barrage of three-pointers that Sacramento will attempt with their run-and-gun style in transition, and the likes of P.J. Washington, Maxi Kleber, Dereck Lively II, and Daniel Gafford will need to ensure Sabonis doesn't start distributing at will to Sacramento's perimeter shooters.

The Mavericks defense will be the determining factor these two late March affairs versus the Kings, as the two teams are both offensive powerhouses with deep rotations. Dallas arguably even has a better top two in Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic compared to the Kings' Sabonis and De'Aaron Fox, so Dallas' improved depth in their frontcourt will really need to show in these two late March affairs.

1. April 14 game against the Oklahoma City Thunder

There are a lot of variables in play given this is the last game of the regular season for both the Thunder and the Mavericks. This game could end up being a throw-away for one of the two teams or even both of them depending on how things are looking in the Western Conference standings leading up to the game.

As tight as things are right now though, both the Thunder and Mavericks would be doing everything they can to secure a victory in this game if the playoffs started today, as the Thunder are only one game behind the Minnesota Timberwolves for the first seed in the West. The Mavericks are currently 1-1 against the Thunder this season, and this game will be the fourth and final matchup of the season between the two squads.

This game also could serve as a precursor to a potential first round playoff series between the Mavericks and Thunder, as it's very possible that Dallas could match up with Oklahoma City if they land at either the seventh or eighth seed. The Thunder have a budding young core led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren, and they have tons of depth on both sides of the ball.

The Mavericks blew the Thunder out last time the two teams played, but they can't make the mistake of underestimating the Thunder the next two times these teams play. It seems likely the Mavericks may encounter their I-35 counterparts in Oklahoma City at some point in the playoffs if they wish to make a long playoff run regardless of whether it's in the first round or later rounds, so this April 14 game will be crucial for Dallas heading into the playoffs.

Unless Dallas and Oklahoma City punt on this game due to having clinched a certain playoff seed, expect this game to be extremely uber-competitive from both sides, as the Mavericks and Thunder will want to carry on momentum into the playoffs in their last reglar season game at the very least.

For more on the Dallas Mavericks ahead of the playoffs, make sure to check back with us as we'll have you covered.