The Mavericks' playoff hopes are dashed as it sits at the bottom of the Western Conference, but it is still playing with plenty of fight as it closely trailed the Spurs until the final seconds of Tuesday's game.
Dallas was two possessions away from catching the visiting San Antonio squad when rookie Luka Doncic was fouled. He missed a pair of free throws that would have helped the Mavs inch closer and ultimately fell 112-105 to the Spurs at the American Airlines Center.
Doncic finished a minus-9 with 12 points, six rebounds and seven assists. He also went 1 of 9 from the free-throw line marking the first time a player has hit that number since Shaquille O'Neal in 2004.
The Mavs cut its deficit to as little as three points three times in the fourth quarter, but couldn't stop the streaking Spurs, who won its sixth straight game. DeMar DeRozan led the efforts with a team-high 33 points and had some highlight-worthy moves too.
Jalen Brunson led the Mavs with a career-high 34 points in its losing effort.
Spurs is currently the seventh seed in the West. The Jazz trail by 1/2 game as the eight seed and the next contender, Kings, is 4 1/2 games behind San Antonio.
Studs of the Night
Bojan Bogdanovic's 24 points led the Pacers to a 103-98 victory over the Knicks. He also tallied four rebounds and two assists in front of a home crowd.
In the Pelicans' losing efforts, Elfrid Payton recorded his third triple-double of the season with 14 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists. New Orleans dropped its fourth consecutive game in a 130-113 loss to Milwaukee.
Ben Simmons had 26 points in the 76ers' 106-99 win over the Cavaliers.
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Dud of the Night
Knicks rookie Kevin Knox had his highest point total (16) since late February, but the buckets just weren't enough for New York as it fell 103-98 to the Pacers. Knox left the court with a minus-15.
Highlights
Hello, King James. LeBron James finished this steal with a massive dunk off the backboard. He had 36 points, 10 rebounds and four assists to lead the Lakers to a 123-107 win against the Bulls in Chicago.
Well, this was easy. During the Nuggets' late matchup against the Timberwolves, Nikola Jokic finished this play barely breaking a sweat.
What's Next?
Warriors (45-21) at Rockets (42-25), 8:30 p.m. ET — It isn't hard to see why this is the marquee matchup Wednesday. The Warriors will take on the No. 3 seeded Rockets in Houston. But, it will be without star Kevin Durant, who led the team with 29 points the last time these two met. In that contest, James Harden didn't see the court but the Rockets started a nine-game winning streak which it will hope to extend against the best team in the West.
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