3 takeaways from Mavericks' loss to tanking 76ers, Quentin Grimes

The Mavericks lost to the only team in the NBA with a worse injury situation.

Mar 16, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Quentin Grimes (5) shoots past Dallas Mavericks forward P.J. Washington (25) during the second half at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

The Dallas Mavericks dropped one of their worst games of the season on Sunday afternoon, falling 130-125 to the Philadelphia 76ers. Philly was missing 10 players, including Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Paul George, and more, but they were still able to beat the Mavs. Dallas was still missing a bunch of key pieces, but P.J. Washington returned to put up a double-double, and it still wasn't enough.

The battle for the 10 seed in the West is becoming an unwatchable war. The Mavs are 2-10 in their last 12 games, but the Phoenix Suns are 6-14 since the start of February and still 1.5 games back of Dallas. Neither team wants this Play-In spot, it seems.

Here are three takeaways from Sunday's loss.

READ MORE: Mavericks starter calls out fans for 'Fire Nico' chants after Luka Doncic trade

1. Spencer Dinwiddie's potential game-tying shot was... something

Spencer Dinwiddie had Klay Thompson and 10 seconds to find a three to tie the game, and had the sanity to shoot a fadeaway three, who does bro think he is 😂 pic.twitter.com/CPit3g25R5

— SM Highlights (@SMHighlights1) March 16, 2025

The Dallas Mavericks were down 128-125 with 12 seconds to go, plenty of time to generate a good look or even get a quick two and foul. Instead, Spencer Dinwiddie flashed to the ball and attempted a turn-around shot from the left wing while contested. Shockingly, it missed. Jason Kidd said of the play after the game, "Klay [Thompson] was coming to get it. Naji [Marshall]’s our quarterback. He made the right play in the sense of thinking maybe Klay was covered so he went to Spence. He took a good shot. It just hit back rim. Had a good opportunity there."
I wouldn't consider that a "good shot" with that much time left on the clock.

2. A forgotten part about the Luka Doncic trade had a career day

Philadelphia 76ers guard Jalen-Hood Schifino (17) controls the ball against the Indiana Pacers in the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images / Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

Jalen Hood-Schifino is well on his way to becoming a trivia answer when people talk about the Luka Doncic trade years from now. Despite being a first-round pick in 2023, the Lakers had to give the Utah Jazz second-round picks to make the salaries work to bring in Luka Doncic, and the Jazz waived him soon after. He was picked up recently by the 76ers on a two-way contract and proceeded to put up a career-high 19 points on 5/9 three-point shooting. To put that in perspective, his previous career-high was 10 points, and he had made two three-pointers EVER in the NBA. That's not a great sign for a Mavericks team that was supposed to be built around the defense.

3. Quentin Grimes had a point to prove

Philadelphia 76ers guard Quentin Grimes (5) controls the ball against the Dallas Mavericks during the second half at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Quentin Grimes was a Dallas Maverick at the start of the season but couldn't come to an agreement on a contract extension. So when the Mavs traded Luka Doncic, Grimes' agent reportedly asked for a trade out of there, and Nico Harrison made another terrible trade by sending him to the 76ers for Caleb Martin. Grimes had more points in this game (28) than Martin has in his entire tenure with the Mavs (23). If that's not proving a point, I don't know what is.

READ MORE: Quentin Grimes leads 76ers past Mavericks, 130-125

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