Portland Trail Blazers vs Dallas Mavericks Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 16/12/2023, 07:00  by Devesh Jaganath in NBA Predictions

The Portland Trail Blazers will take on the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA at Moda Center on Saturday night. The hosts are 6-17 and 13th in the Western Conference, while the visitors are 15-9 and fourth. 

The Dallas Mavericks are gearing up for their fourth game in a span of six days. The demanding schedule seemed to take its toll on Thursday night when they faced the Western Conference-leading Timberwolves and suffered a 119-101 defeat. Despite Luka Doncic's impressive performance, contributing 39 points and 13 rebounds, the Mavericks' four-game winning streak came to an end. Notably, Doncic has now achieved the feat of scoring 30 or more points in nine consecutive games. The Mavs have one of the most potent offenses in the league this season, averaging 119.4 points per game,  5.7 points more than the 113.7 points allowed on average by the Portland Trail Blazers. However, the defensive aspect has been a challenge for the Mavericks, ranking in the bottom 10 across most major defensive categories.

The Portland Trail Blazers anticipated a challenging season, and that has been the case in the first quarter of the campaign. Seeming to still be adapting to life without Damian Lillard, Portland have slumped to a record of 6-17. On Thursday night, the team suffered a fifth consecutive loss, succumbing to a 122-114 defeat at home against the Utah Jazz. Rookie Scoot Henderson had an impressive performance, posting a career-high 23 points and 10 assists for the Blazers. Currently, the Trail Blazers find themselves as the 29th-ranked scoring team in the NBA, averaging 106.8 points per game compared to Dallas, who allow an average of 117 points per game. In addition, the Blazers are stuggling in their three-point shooting, ranking 24th with a 34.6% success rate from behind the arc.