'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The Dallas Mavericks face the San Antonio Spurs in an NBA regular season game on Saturday night. It will be their second matchup of the season.
Both teams are entering the game on separate three-game losing streaks, but for the Mavericks, a win at home will give them a major boost ahead of their travel to Phoenix for their Christmas Day game against the Suns.
San Antonio Spurs vs Dallas Mavericks: Preview, betting tips, predictions
The Spurs (4-23) play the Mavericks (16-12) on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. The game will not be aired nationally but will be aired locally on Bally Sports Southwest-Dallas and KENS in San Antonio and streamed live on the NBA League Pass.
Trending
Moneyline: Spurs (+225) vs Mavericks (-275)
Spread: Spurs +7.0 (-110) vs Mavericks -7.0 (-110)
Total (O/U): Spurs (o239.0) vs Mavericks (u239.0)
San Antonio Spurs vs Dallas Mavericks: Preview
The Spurs and the Mavericks face off for the second time this season. The Mavericks beat the Spurs in their first meeting, 126-119, in San Antonio, which was Victor Wembanyama's regular season debut.
Both teams, however, lost their last three games each. For the Mavericks, the dry spell came after winning five of their last six games, while the Spurs went back to losing ways after stunning the LA Lakers in their last win.
San Antonio Spurs vs Dallas Mavericks: Starting lineups
Keldon Johnson is dealing with some lower back tightness, but he is expected to start for the Spurs along with Jeremy Sochan, Victor Wembanyama, Devin Vassell and Malaki Branham.
Meanwhile, Luka Doncic joined fellow Mavericks superstar Kyrie Irving on the injury list, and he missed their last game against the Houston Rockets on Friday. Dante Exum, who started for Irving in recent games, was also ruled out.
Currently, both Doncic and Exum are questionable for the game, and the Mavericks might likely start the game with Derrick Lively Jr., Grant Williams, Markieff Morris, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Jaden Hardy.
San Antonio Spurs vs Dallas Mavericks: Key players, betting tips
Victor Wembanyama was held to just seven points in the Spurs' loss to the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night.
It is interesting to note that Fan Duel is projecting Wembanyama to struggle a bit in scoring again against the Mavericks despite the possible absence of Doncic.
Meanwhile, Covers.com did not release a prop update on the Mavericks, which is understandable since they are in the second game of their back-to-back pre-Christmas schedule.
With Doncic possibly out, though, fans must watch out for Hardaway, who had 16 points against the Rockets.
San Antonio Spurs vs Dallas Mavericks: Predictions
The betting line opened with the Mavericks as -275 favorites over the Spurs (+225 underdogs). The Mavericks are also -7.0 favorites over the Spurs in the spread department.
While it is understandable that the game will be in Dallas, Doncic's possible absence pending a final update could make the projection somehow tricky.
It could go down to the motivation of both teams as the Spurs' playoff hopes are slowly chipping away. The Mavericks are the safe pick here, but expect the game to be closer than the projected spread.
