Mavericks let one slip away to Nets behind ugly fourth quarter

The Dallas Mavericks were looking to end their recent skid on Tuesday night as they hosted the Brooklyn Nets. Stars Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis both returned to the lineup for the nationally televised game. Dallas raced out to a lead and did not trail until the fourth quarter where the Mavericks collapsed for their third straight loss as the Nets took the 102-99 win.

Luka helped his team get a 17-point advantage before Brooklyn made a furious comeback. Dallas had no answers for Kevin Durant and James Harden in the final period as the Nets outscored the Mavs by 14. They did it on both ends as the Mavericks scored just 13 over the final 12 minutes.

Doncic put on a show on Tuesday night. He missed the team’s previous game with ankle soreness, but the 22-year-old looked healthy as he produced 28 points, nine assists, and six rebounds in 36 minutes. The Mavericks were healthy, but their roster issues persisted. Here is a closer look at what led to the loss on Dec. 7 against the Nets.

Dallas Mavericks let one slip away in loss to Brooklyn Nets

There is no shame in losing to the Nets. Brooklyn is one of the best teams in the NBA, and they employ two of the top ten players in basketball. Dallas’s issues were on full display, though.

The Mavericks are struggling to hit jumpers. They got plenty of open looks on Tuesday night but hit just nine of the 46 3-point tries. Dallas needs to find their shooting in a hurry to get back on track.

The team's lack of ball-handling and playmaking was on display too. The Nets held Dallas to five points in the first six minutes of the fourth quarter. Head coach Jason Kidd brought Luka Doncic back with 9:32 left in the contest after Brooklyn opened the period on a ten to two run.

No matter how spectacular Luka Doncic is, the Dallas Mavericks need to fix the holes in their roster if they want to go on a deep playoff run. There is no time to rest as the Mavs travel to Memphis to face the Grizzlies on Wednesday night. Tune in to see if Dallas can get back on track.