Mavericks vs Heat | 2021 NBA Expert Analysis

Both the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat are going to make the playoffs, but each is trying to avoid the play-in tournament in their respective conferences. The Mavericks visit the Heat on Tuesday night as they wrap up their season series with Miami favored on the NBA odds.

How to Bet Mavericks at Heat NBA Odds & TV Info

When: Tuesday, 8 PM ET
Where: AmericanAirlines Arena
TV: NBA League Pass
Stream:com, NBA TV app
Radio:com
NBA Odds: TBA (on a few key injuries)

Last Meeting

The teams played in Dallas on New Year’s Day and the Mavs won 93-83. Luka Doncic had 27 points and 14 rebounds. The Mavericks scored the final nine points of the second quarter to lead 46-31 at halftime. They padded their lead with a 10-2 run to open the third quarter and led by as many as 24. Heat All-Star Jimmy Butler scored two points, both on free throws, and shot 0 for 6 from the floor over 27 minutes. Miami missed all 12 of its 3-point attempts in the first half and finished 7 for 33 behind the arc.

Miami had taken 16-of-18 regular season meetings against Dallas prior to the loss on New Year’s Day (after falling to the Mavericks in the 2011 NBA Finals). The Heat also won 8-of-9 in Dallas prior to the loss. The Heat have taken five straight and eight of the last nine regular season meetings in Miami.

Why Bet on Dallas? | NBA Betting Odds

The Mavs were upset at home by Sacramento 111-99 on Sunday. It completed a 3-0 season series sweep over the Mavericks for the Kings. They are 24-37 against the rest of the NBA.

Superstar Luka Doncic got ejected very late in that game, finishing the contest with 30 points, six boards, six assists and two steals. He was ejected with just a hair over 30 seconds left in the game when the Kings were up double figures, so while it didn’t affect the game. However, he now has 15 technical fouls on the year, meaning the next one leads to a one-game suspension.

“I won’t get another one,” Doncic said. “No way. And the first one should get rescinded, too. It was an offensive foul. And I was like, hell no. And he told me I cannot tell him, hell no. Maybe I can tell it to others, but to him, no. And that’s why I got a tech.”

Doncic is tied for the league lead in 20-point, 5-rebound, 5-assist games in 2020-21 (44) and has the most over the past two seasons (94). He also leads the NBA lead in 30-point, 5-rebound, 5-assist games this year (20) and has the most 30-5-5 efforts over the past two seasons (46).

Now, the schedule gets tougher with a trip to Miami and home games Thursday against powerful Brooklyn before Friday’s meeting with Cleveland wraps up five games in seven days.

“It’s eight games left,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “They’re all very meaningful. Hopefully we’ll get Tim (Hardaway) back. We’ll see where KP (Kristaps Porzingis) is and we’ll head to Miami and look to play better.

Porzingis (right knee soreness) is doubtful for Tuesday. It would be his third straight game on the shelf due to his troublesome right knee. Maxi Kleber (Achilles) is questionable. However, Tim Hardaway Jr. should play. He was idle Sunday with right ankle soreness. Carlisle had said last week that he was looking for a spot to rest Hardaway, who had missed only one of the first 63 games.

Why Bet on Miami? | NBA Betting Odds

The Heat won their third in a row Sunday, 121-111 at Charlotte. Miami had 30 assists on 45 made baskets and outscored Charlotte 64-50 in the paint.

Jimmy Butler flirted with a triple-double during Sunday’s win, tallying 18 points, eight rebounds, eight assists, one steal and one block over 28 minutes. He finished 5-of-8 from the field and 8-of-9 at the line. He didn’t commit a single turnover while he was out there, and he had a team-best plus/minus rating of plus-14. In his seven games since returning from an ankle injury, Butler has averaged 21.7 points, 7.0 assists and 6.0 rebounds in 33.9 minutes per contest.

Butler also played stout defense on multiple players, including LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier, and nabbed his 100th steal of the season to become just the second player in the league to record that many this year. He also became just the second player in NBA history to record 100 steals in eight straight seasons (James Harden is the other).

Bam Adebayo had 20 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. Adebayo had brought in at least 10 rebounds in each of the last two contests, but he led the team with 10 assists in Sunday’s win to record his third consecutive double-double. The big man also shot 69.2 percent from the floor. Across his last five appearances, Adebayo has averaged 19.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists in 34.2 minutes per game. Adebayo has limited guards to just 38.9 percent shooting on the season, including only 31.9 percent from three-point range.

Goran Dragic had 18 points – he had had been held to single digits in the scoring department in four of his previous five outings. Dragic was questionable for Sunday’s contest due to lower back and right knee injury recovery.

Andre Iguodala experienced left hip tightness late in the fourth and exited the game. Tyler Herro (right foot soreness) did not travel with the team and was an active scratch.

The Heat are holding opponents to just 40.6 points in the paint and 10.2 fast break points, both the lowest in the NBA. Miami is also ranked second in opponent field goals made (38.7), third in points allowed (107.3), fourth in opponent field goal percentage (.454), fourth in charges drawn (58), sixth in deflections (1,014) and eighth in defensive rating (110.0).