NBA: First victory for Schröder and OKC – Mavs are defeated

The Dallas Mavericks have lost to the Utah Jazz in spite of another well put on Maxi Kleber against the Utah Jazz. Dennis Schröder, on the other hand, is finally celebrating his first victory of the season with the Oklahoma City Thunder.

That started damn bumpy for the Mavs, who had big problems with the usual strong defense of Jazz at the beginning. Only a quarter of the throws found their way into the basket in the first twelve minutes, giving the Jazz a two-digit lead. It took a Buzzer Beater from Maxi Kleber (11, 4/8 FG, 3 Rebounds) from the corner to kiss the hosts awake.

The man from Würzburg seamlessly continued his strong performances from the first games and brought his team back within striking distance with 9 points in three minutes. The Big also managed a circus reverse basketball with foul. Dallas was now better in the game and even came to the first lead in the game. Also Luka Doncic (14, 5/13 FG, 5 Assists) was now and sank two triples in a very short time.

The Jazz, on the other hand, came through the collective, from which above all Donovan Mitchell and the extremely circumspect Joe Ingles (12) stood out, so it went into the cabins with a 50:46 tour for Utah. Nevertheless, the Mavs were now fully in the game, also because Dennis Smith Jr. (27, 12/19 FG) with hard drives put the defense enormously under pressure.

So an extremely balanced game developed, in which both teams had mini runs again and again, but could not set themselves apart decisively. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, however, the guests got the upper hand again, as Dante Exum, among others, played good minutes. The Australian was also in focus when Dwight Powell brought him to the ground after a foul whistle. The refs, however, left it at a technical foul, while the lead for Utah grew to ten points.

Subsequently, the Jazz controlled the game with many light finishes on the ring and lots of free throws, Utah was already after three minutes in the final quarter in the bonus. The Mavs came back with a late run, but a completely open trio of Ingles just two minutes before the end made the decision (101:113).

The best Jazz scorer was Rudy Gobert (23, 16 rebounds), who had a thrilling duel with DeAndre Jordan (12, 19 boards, 9 dimes). The Mavs-Center set up a new career high in assists and missed the first triple double of his career by a hair’s breadth. Otherwise, jazz players score in double digits, including Mitchell (20) and Rookie Grayson Allen (11).

Russell Westbrook was questionable before the match, but was able to play in the end. Steven Adams (calf strain) had to pass, so Nerlens Noel got his first start for the Thunder. But even without their centre, the hosts had no major problems with the Suns and thus clinched their first victory of the season – in the fifth attempt.

The Thunder did not need any outstanding performance from the ex-MVP. On the contrary: Westbrook had big problems at the beginning, his first four throws were missed and he suffered three ball losses. It only got better when Dennis Schröder entered the field. The German national player gave the Thunder game a good boost and made sure that OKC took off a little.

Especially the role players of the Thunder could finally shine. Patrick Patterson and also Jerami Grant relieved the stars properly, so that also the strong Paul George had it easier. Admittedly, the Suns were quite toothless without their Star Devin Booker. Deandre Ayton was solid, but couldn’t fix it on his own.

Phoenix didn’t let the race break completely, but Westbrook had now found his rhythm and only missed one after his false start. The lead grew to 20 points in the meantime, so it was after three quarters, after PG-13 hit with the siren from the middle line.

With that the will of the Suns was finally broken, even if the starters came back again. Nevertheless, it was a clearer matter than the final result suggested, the Thunder led in the final section with up to 26 points.

Westbrook (23) and George were together the top scorers of the hosts, Noel surprised with 20 points, 15 rebounds and 4 steals. Schröder also played well with 12 points and 7 assists. For the Suns, T.J. Warren (18) together with Elie Okobo was the most hard-working points collector, while Deandre Ayton (16, 11 rebounds) played the almost familiar double-double.