Preview: Red-hot Mavs hope to keep winning streak going against Heat

MIAMI – The Dallas Mavericks enter Sunday’s game against the Miami Heat with an NBA-high, tied four-game winning streak saved in their back pockets.

Besides the Mavs, the other teams that currently own a four-game winning streak are the Los Angeles Clippers, Boston Celtics and Milwaukee Bucks. But what separates what the Mavs have accomplished over the last four games as opposed to the Clippers, Celtics and Bucks is the average margin of victory.

So how do the Mavs keep this train moving on the right track?

“(I’ve got to) learn from my mistakes and not be complacent with wins and not be complacent with just what we haven’t gotten in a while,” center Dereck Lively II said. “It’s just a move on to the next game, next game, next day mentality and just take it and move on.”

The Mavs enter the game against the Heat after defeating the Denver Nuggets, 123-120, on Friday. It was a game where the Mavs blew a 24-point lead in the second half, then rallied after trailing the Nuggets by five points with less than three minutes left in the game.

The Mavs have won their last four games by an average of 15.8 points per game. competition, while the Celtics have won theirs by 10.8 points, the Clippers by 10.3 points and the Bucks by 8.8 points. The challenge for the Mavs against Miami is to keep the ball moving, with multiple players involved offensively, and then limit the Heat to just one shot.

“At the end of the day, I know we have to be better on the defensive glass,” forward PJ Washington said. “So every time a shot goes up, I try to be aggressive and try to get a rebound for my team.

“(We’ve got to) just focus on the little things and I just kind of get it going and just be aggressive. I credit my teammates for trusting me as well.”

Here are some other nuggets surrounding the game between the Mavs and the Heat.

*This is the second of a three-game road trip for the Mavs. The trip started on Friday with the Mavs’ very wild 123-120 victory over the Nuggets in Denver. The trip concludes with Monday’s game in Atlanta before the Mavs return home to host the New York Knicks on Wednesday.

*The Heat are in the midst of a three-game homestand. The home stand started with last Monday’s 106-89 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. The homestand ends with Tuesday’s game against Milwaukee before Miami plays at Charlotte on Wednesday.

*After uncharacteristically losing four games in a row, the Mavs have followed it up by winning four games in a row. And in each of the last three games, the Mavs have distributed the ball so well that seven players tallied 10 or more points in each of those games.

*The top production players for the Heat are Tyler Herro (24.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg), Jimmy Butler (17.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Bam Adebayo (16.3 ppg, 9.5 rpg) and Duncan Robinson (10.2 ppg).

*The Mavs will again be without star point guard Luka Dončić, who is out with a right wrist sprain. Fortunately for the Mavs, they are 2-0 when Dončić has not played this season. In addition to the game against Denver that Dončić missed, the Mavs also won at Oklahoma City, 121–119, on November 17 while Dončić was out nursing a bruised right knee. Dončić is also slated to miss Monday’s game in Atlanta and Wednesday’s contest in Dallas against the New York Knicks.

*The well-rested Heat have not played since last Monday’s 17-point win over Philadelphia. In that game, Jimmy Butler tallied 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and Tyler Herro contributed 18 points, five rebounds and five assists.

*Mavs forward Naji Marshall had a career-high 26 points off the bench on 11-of-15 shooting against Denver. He also converted 3-of-4 baskets from three-point land during his 26 minutes on the court.

DALLAS MAVERICKS (9-7) at MIAMI HEAT (6-7)

When: 17.00, Sunday

Where: Kaseya Center, Miami

TV: KFAA-29, MavsTV Stream

Radio: KEGL 97.1 FM The Eagle, 99.1 FM Zona MX (Spanish)

X: @DwainPrice