The Dallas Mavericks have been up and down in the early days of the season and were looking to get back in the win column against the Orlando Magic on Sunday night. After losing the first game of a five-game home stretch to the Houston Rockets last Thursday, the Mavs had a few days off to regroup. With young star Paolo Banchero sidelined with an oblique injury, the Mavs had a favorable outlook heading into the game against their first Eastern Conference opponent of the season. After a competitive first quarter, the Mavs blew this open and moved to 4-2 on the season.

Let’s get to the numbers!

Luka Doncic: A

32 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists

If you score more points than you have played minutes, you immediately get a good grade. The Mavs rotation looked a bit more like last season’s, at least in terms of Luka playing the entire first quarter, and he made the most of it. He scored 14 points, three of which came within half a second of the clock when he pulled the hoop and staged the damage to bigger Jonathan Isaac. As the box score showed, he didn’t really slow down from there. His shooting touch was back tonight, making 50% from the field on 22 shots, including 5-for-13 from three. He received another technical foul, bringing his total to four for the season in six games. If this were the season where these kinds of things were restricted, he’s not off to a good start on that front.

Kyrie Irving: B

17 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals

Irving had a solid night in a blowout win, playing under 30 minutes. While it may not have been his usual performance, he put together a pretty solid game and earned some rest on the first night of a back-to-back.

Klay Thompson: B-

9 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks

Thompson was called in for his shooting but has had some issues over the past few games. Tonight he was just 1-for-5 from three and 40% overall from the floor on 10 shots. His 5 boards and 4 assists were great, but his 2 blocks were nice to see. He showed quick hands all night and his ability to drive and hit an angled shot adds another dimension to the team.

PJ Washington: B

7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal

Washington just looked good tonight. On his first shot attempt of the game, he gave up a three, but instead drove into the teeth of the defense and converted a nice push shot. At the time, it seemed like a great decision to strike out on my own. A few minutes later, he drilled a three from the top of the arc. He had a quietly nice game with an efficient shooting night, going 3-for-4 overall and 1-for-2 from three. Like many other players on the night, he did a lot of little things that didn’t show up in the stats.

Dereck Lively II: A

11 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist

Lively was a beast with his double-double in this one. He went a very efficient 5-for-7 from the floor and executed defensive interference as you would expect. He didn’t register a block and was a bit light on assists, but bonus points for his team-leading plus/minus of plus-25.

Naji Marshall: B

4 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals

In the first quarter alone, Marshall showed us the best he can offer the team. On the first of two consecutive possessions, he grabbed a rebound and went coast-to-coast for a reverse layup. He followed that up by upping the pace again and connecting with Dereck Lively for an alley-oop that resulted in a Magic timeout. In the closing minutes of the second quarter, he had a come-from-nowhere sale, converting an alley-oop to Gafford on a one-step pass across the half-court line. With about a minute left in the third quarter, he forced a turnover on a Magic inbounds pass to set up a score at the other end. His box score may not surprise you and he hasn’t managed three yet this season, but he had a huge positive impact in this match.

Quentin Grimes: B+

5 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals

Grimes put in a fine 17 minutes in this, helping the team deliver a performance that was in line with what everyone expected from him. He shot 50% overall and from three (1-for-2 from three), grabbed a pair of rebounds and forced two turnovers with active hands and dashing play. A solid game with positive contributions and no blunders.

Daniel Gafford: A

18 points, 8 rebounds, 1 steal

Gafford came away with six points in the first four minutes of the game and showed he has more than just dunks in his repertoire, with a baby hook that has looked better every game. Because Paolo Banchero didn’t start and Wendell Carter Jr. injured early in this game, the Magic lacked size, but don’t mistake it for a small-ball dunk fest. Gafford showed good footwork and a nice touch around the rim, causing plenty of damage in just 20 minutes.

Spencer Dinwiddie: B-

2 assists, 1 block

Dinwiddie’s match tonight was the perfect example of how to get a good grade despite an unremarkable statistic. He showed his skill and vision by making a pinpoint pass to Daniel Gafford for an alley-oop from half court. This one doesn’t appear in the boxscore at all due to a Gafford miss (although he did get his own rebound and put-back), but it was still amazing vision and accuracy on the court. He also made the most of trash time, simply refusing to throw away belongings until the buzzer sounded. He broke a Magic fast break with the Mavs on 26 and moments later found Naji Marshall on a tricky pass for a layup before checking out for the night.

Dwight Powell: B+

2 rebounds, 2 blocks

Powell is the only player who primarily recorded the garbage time that appears on the transcript for that night. As I watched the game, I thought about giving him an honorable mention for his activities on the bench, standing, cheering and greeting his teammates at stoppages. When he finally got some attention, he went further than just an honorable mention. In less than 8 minutes of play, he didn’t have much time to rack up stats, but his two blocked shots were demonstrative and showed he wasn’t just coasting.

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