Free Throws Aren't Free: 3 Big Takeaways From the Mavs' Disheartening Loss to Bucks

The Mavericks blew their chance to take down the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday as they choked at the charity stripe in the closing minutes.

The Dallas Mavericks lost a heartbreaker on Friday night to the Milwaukee Bucks, 106-105, to end their three-game winning streak. 

Dallas went into the fourth quarter with an 11-point advantage but Milwaukee fought back into the game, forcing yet another crunch time game for the Mavericks. 

In the fourth, the Mavs missed five crucial free throws in a row with under three minutes remaining to help seal their fate.

With 2.1 seconds remaining, the Mavs had one last shot to get the last second victory but a miscommunication on the play call led to a 30-foot brick from Luka Doncic at the buzzer. 

Here are the three big takeaways from Dallas' one-point loss on Friday.

Free throw disaster

10-of-24. 

That's what the Mavericks shot from the free throw line in Friday's one-point loss to the Bucks, which included six misses in the final 3:41 of the game. 

It's honestly embarrassing for a professional basketball team to be this bad at one of the easiest parts of if the game. Shooting just 10-of-24 is almost hard to do, and it hurts the Mavs that much more in a one-point loss to a contending team. 

Tim Hardaway Jr. was fouled on a 3-point attempt with just under three minutes remaining, missing all three shots from the free throw line. Dorian Finney-Smith missed a pair of free throws with just 10.1 seconds left with the Mavs up 105-104.

Free throw shooting has been an issue all season long for the Mavs as they rank 29th out of 30 teams in free throw percentage at just 71.8 percent as a team yet they shoot the fifth-most attempts from the charity stripe per game.

Following the loss, ESPN's Bobby Marks tweeted out Dallas' free throw shooting numbers from their last six losses, which was a combined 84-of-144 at a miserable 58.3 percent.

Last 6 Dallas losses from the FT line

10-24
14-29
16-25
19-24
13-21
12-21

— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) December 10, 2022

This has to be fixed and quickly.

Jason Kidd said following the loss that the Mavericks 'practice free throws all the time' but clearly, something has to change to avoid instances like this in crunch time to happen again.

End-of-game play calls

With just 2.1 seconds remaining, the Mavs took a timeout to draw up a play in hopes to run away with the last-second victory. Once the team stepped out on the floor, the Bucks immediately called out the play that Dallas was running, which Doncic caught on to, yet no audible was made and the Bucks capitalized. 

"They pre-switched. I think there was a little miscommunication on the players. I just wanted him to slip, so I didn’t have Jrue on me," Doncic said following the loss. 

With two seconds, there isn't much you can draw up, which Doncic alluded to postgame, but it has to be better than a 35-foot heave or a contested stepback from Doncic in every single one of these situations. 

Luka Doncic on the Bucks knowing what the Mavericks were running on the final play: "They pre-switched. I think there was a little miscommunication with the players. I just wanted him to slip, so I didn’t have Jrue on me."

(Clip below has the full play followed by his answer.) pic.twitter.com/z3fL6tZgfU

— Grant Afseth (@GrantAfseth) December 10, 2022

This may be an instance where the Mavericks miss the offensive mind of Igor Kokoskov, who left the Dallas bench for Brooklyn in the offseason.

Regardless, it's on Kidd and the current coaching staff to draw up better looks in closing situations to give Doncic and the team more efficient, open opportunities to win games in clutch moments. 

Momentum swings

The Mavericks have had issues with slow starts and playing down to their competition so far this season. 

Another issue that this team is facing is keeping their foot on the gas when they have a lead, letting the momentum swing to their opponent, often ending in a disappointing loss for Dallas. 

In the third quarter, the Mavericks came out firing, outscoring the Bucks 36-21 to take an 11-point lead into the fourth quarter.

And yet, by the time Doncic reentered the game with just under seven minutes remaining, the lead had been cut to just one.

Not just when Doncic is on the bench, but specifically moments like this is when the Mavericks' need for another ballhandler and playmaker is evident because too many times we see the Dallas offense become stagnant without No. 77 on the floor, often leading to a run by the opponent.

Like the free throw shooting and the end game play calls, keeping a chokehold on the momentum in games like Friday night is another issue haunting this Mavericks team.

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