Enhanced Box Score: Bulls 115, Mavericks 112 – April 7, 2023
So that was pretty lame.
While I guess it was fun to watch guys like Carlik Jones and Terry Taylor get some minutes, that game felt like busy work. The Dallas Mavericks were missing basically half of their team, and Luka Doncic officially checked out after playing just 13 minutes of action. Meanwhile, the Bulls sat Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and Patrick Beverley. Alex Caruso also played just 18 minutes and Vucevic appeared in just 20 minutes.
It became abundantly clear the Mavs were doing what they could to throw that game. While winning their final two could have put them in the 10 seed if the Memphis Grizzlies lost on Sunday, they seemingly preferred the opportunity to keep this year’s first-round pick. The Knicks acquired that draft capital in the Kristaps Prozingis trade, but it is top 10 protected. Dallas now has the 10th-worst record in the league.
I do want to at least tip my cap to both Patrick Williams and Coby White. In a game where the stars were basically given the night off, those two stepped up in the way they should. Williams dropped 23 points with 8 rebounds and White had a game-high 24 points to go along with 11 assists and 7 rebounds. Williams’ physicality was a pretty big problem for the short-handed Mavericks. But it was White’s command of the game that was the most impressive. He was instrumental in pushing the pace and helping the team finish with a 56-42 advantage in the paint.
But, yeah, there really isn’t much to get into about this game. Neither team was giving it their all and strong performances are truly hard to judge when we consider the level of competition on the court. Expect one more of these on Sunday against Detroit. Then, a Play-In meeting with the Raptors. *shivers*
Check out the full box score here.
