The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Denver Nuggets 123-120 on Friday night in Denver, in what is likely the most impressive win yet for the Mavericks this season.

Without Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving struggling in the second half, Dallas defeated Denver despite the return of Nikola Jokic after a brief absence due to the birth of a child. Apparently every Maverick that played helped secure the win in some way.

It started well, with Dallas leading after the first 33-31 and then exploding in the second quarter to beat Denver 40-22. Dallas dominated most of the first half due to its size, scoring in the paint and controlling the paint defensively despite Jokic’s presence.

As great as the first half was, most of the second half was the opposite. Dallas built the lead to 24 points early in the third quarter, but the Nuggets roared back behind Jokic and the Mavericks’ offense sputtered.

Irving struggled to get anything going for most of the third and fourth quarters, but the Mavericks combination of PJ Washington and Dereck Lively made plays on both ends of the court to seal the victory. Naji Marshall was also huge all night, coming off the bench to score a team-high 26 points. Washington finished with 22 points.

Here are our thoughts.

PJ Washington and Dereck Lively saved the day

The Mavericks not only gave up a 24-point lead in the second half, but also trailed by five points with less than three minutes left in the fourth quarter. All the good vibes from the first half were gone and it looked like Denver was ready to take it home. That’s when the Mavericks started working on PJ Washington and Dereck Lively’s frontcourt.

Lively controlled the game at the rim, blocking two shots in the final minutes, while Washington picked up the slack on the other end and scored crucial buckets near the rim to help the Mavericks regain the lead.

With Aaron Gordon still out due to injury for the Nuggets, Denver’s frontcourt is very small beyond Nikola Jokic. Dallas took advantage out of the gate, using Washington’s size and skill to score repeatedly in the paint, whether it was outside post-ups or Washington running into the Nuggets’ smaller defenders and driving over them. That happened again late in the fourth quarter, when Washington’s final bucket saw him drive over and past the small defenseman in Nuggets guard Jamal Murray.

Lively used his size more defensively than offensively – after a strange first three quarters in which Lively again found himself in foul trouble, he turned up the energy in the fourth quarter, especially down the stretch. Lively blocked two shots and fought on the glass, changing the momentum of the game for the Mavericks in the final moments.

The Washington/Lively duo has been great for the Mavericks all season, stingy on defense and just good enough on offense. They showed up again tonight when Dallas needed them most.

The bank went up

While it’s not a stretch to show off the Nuggets bench, one of the worst benches in the entire league, it was still nice to see the Mavericks bench play well – led by Naji Marshall’s game-high 26 points .

Even when Quintin Grimes was inserted into the starting lineup with Luka Doncic out due to a right wrist sprain, the Mavericks bench still scored a whopping 57 points — led by Marshall’s 26, Daniel Gafford’s 13 and Spencer Dinwiddie’s 10.

It was Marshall who really impressed, even going 3-for-4 from three, breaking a cold streak that had left him without a three-pointer in nearly three weeks. Appropriately enough, Marshall’s first three of the night was a wild, running three-pointer at the shot clock buzzer – sometimes that’s all it takes to get out of a slump. Marshall then made two more traditional three-pointers, followed by his regular drives and floats in the paint.

Marshall’s presence was huge, especially since Kyrie Irving looked out of gas in the fourth quarter. The fact that Dallas has another player they feel comfortable handling the ball makes such a big difference when the Mavericks are shorthanded.

This game showed the vision of what these Mavericks can do

The first half for Dallas was the most dominant half they have played all season considering the opponent. It showed the vision of what the Mavericks front office has for this team: keeping the dominant, physical defense from a season ago, but combining it with a more balanced offensive approach.

Dallas went all-in on defense last season, especially when they signed Derrick Jones Jr. started, but seemingly reached the limit of what that kind of roster could do when they lost to the Boston Celtics in the 2024 NBA Finals. Dallas’ offseason goal was simple, but difficult to achieve: maintain that defensive edge, but tune the knob so that the attack doesn’t suffer as much. That’s why the Mavericks Jones, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Josh Green traded for Nashi Marshall, Klay Thompson and Quintin Grimes.

Even with the sloppy second half, the vision was clear: Dallas finally has options. Without Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving struggling, the Mavericks still scored 66 points in the paint. The offensive versatility of this roster is off the charts compared to what the Mavericks were working with a season ago. Marshall, Grimes and Thompson all add more dimensions to what the Mavericks can do offensively, and the defense hasn’t dropped too much. Thompson went 0-for-8 from the field but was still positive on the floor thanks to his floor gravity. Marshall led the team in scoring by dribbling the ball to the basket, which sounds strange, but it’s not something previous Mavericks role players could do well. Bless Jones for all his contributions last season, but seeing Marshall score a key score late in a close game by driving to the hoop really signified why the Mavericks prioritized him in free agency. Grimes did a little bit of everything: He had a good score in transition, he made two 3-pointers and pinged the ball. Meanwhile, Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively were still eating up most of the paint on both ends of the floor, just as they were a season ago. That’s what this front office wanted, and things should only look better once Doncic returns from injury and hopefully regains his shooting form.