For the first time since early March of last season the Golden State Warriors are coming off back-to-back regular season losses. The last time Steve Kerr’s Warriors suffered two straight defeats they went on to win 14 straight games. Given their upcoming schedule that appears to be a tough act to follow, but tonight vs the Dallas Mavericks they should take a step in the right direction.
by Jacob Shannon – Wannamakeabet Staff Writer
Dallas Mavericks vs Golden State Warriors (-12.5)
The first part of this game that really stands out is that it features not only the team with the best record in the NBA (GSW), but also features the team tied for last place (Dallas Mavericks). Any casual NBA fan knows that the Warriors have an offense very few teams can match. But looking in to their offensive efficiency it’s clear they are an offensive juggernaut. They lead the league in just about every scoring category including: points per game, field goal percentage, three point percentage, and free throw percentage. In comparison the Dallas Mavericks are in the bottom third of the league in both point per game and field goal percentage. Even if the Mavs can find a way to go point for point with the Warriors in the first half there’s no chance they can keep that up for the entirety of the game. The one-two punch of Harrison Barnes and Dennis Smith Jr. will be no match for the one-two-three-four punch of KD, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green. To pile on top of that it doesn’t help the Mavs that the Warriors have been a top 3 defensive team this season in terms of opponents field goal percentage.
If past games this season tells us anything it should be noted that the Warriors are 3-0 against the Mavs this season with their average margin of victory being 16 points. I fully expect this game to be a high scoring game, for one team at least. That being the Golden State Warriors who should jump out to an early lead and continue to grow that lead throughout the rest of the game.
The Pick: Golden State Warriors -12.5