‘He Deserves This’: Dusty May Celebrates Caleb Martin’s 10-Point Season Debut In Dallas Mavericks’ Win Over Thunder

DALLAS — Caleb Martin played his first game of the season Wednesday night and scored 10 points in 13:49. He went 4-of-6 from the field and 2-of-4 from 3-point range as the Dallas Mavericks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-96 at American Airlines Center.

Martin had missed the first four games with a right thumb sprain. He was listed as doubtful for Monday’s game at Miami before Dallas downgraded him to out, and he moved up to questionable on Tuesday’s report for Oklahoma City.

He added 2 rebounds and 1 steal, and Dallas outscored the Thunder by 8 points with him on the floor. The Mavericks’ bench outscored Oklahoma City’s 43-19.

Caleb Martin Returns From Right Thumb Sprain

Martin checked in to open the second quarter with Dallas up 33-30. He missed a 25-footer on the first possession, then made a 23-foot 3-pointer off a Marcus Sasser pass with 9:55 left in the half for a 39-34 lead.

With 1:00 left in the third quarter, Cooper Flagg found him with a no-look pass for a 21-footer that made it 92-77. Martin scored 5 more points in the fourth quarter: a 21-footer off a Sasser pass with 8:37 left and a 3-pointer from Kyrie Irving with 7:31 left that put Dallas up 108-89. He also had a steal with 10:49 left in the fourth.

Dallas acquired Martin from the Philadelphia 76ers in February 2025. The 31-year-old forward reached the 2023 NBA Finals with the Miami Heat.

“Caleb, from the first day we got here this summer, we’ve just been communicating with him because he has a real unique past,” Mavericks coach Dusty May said. “He has a unique set of experiences, and he’s a very, very smart, tough basketball player that we felt like could help us win these type of games. And he got injured, and sometimes when you’ve been in a little bit of a shooting funk, he had been in, you take that thing up and it causes you not to think about things and just play more freely.”

“Other than he lost a little bit of confidence in his shooting, he’s always performed well when he wasn’t trying to do too much. He deserves this,” May continued. “If we’re winning games this year, he’ll have a big part of that. He’s got a real presence in our locker room. He’s got respect within our team. Man, what a great guy to coach.”

Dusty May, Kyrie Irving, And Cooper Flagg On Martin

Of the 13 Mavericks who played Wednesday, Martin was the only one making his season debut. Irving assisted on one of his four baskets, Sasser on two, and Flagg on the other.

“The way he trusts his teammates, I think the majority of Caleb’s shots were Kyrie generating or drawing two and getting off the ball,” May said. “And that’s a real staple of our team, of just making the right plays.”

Irving was playing his first home game of the season after sitting out Saturday’s loss to the San Antonio Spurs with left knee injury management. He finished with 15 points and 4 assists, and Dallas was plus-25 in his 26:58.

“Very proud, very proud. Anytime you miss any games, especially in the NBA, the rhythm could change a little bit about your game, and it might take a game or two, but he came in and filled in like he hadn’t missed a beat,” Irving said. “It didn’t look like his injury was holding him back at all. So really proud of him, really proud of our guys, just the way we were complementing each other, and then also just how impactful we were with our minutes, each person.”

“Dusty’s gonna come in and keep playing guys, keep getting fresh bodies in. But our young guys are doing a great job of filling in their roles and listening to what we’ve gotta say,” Irving continued. “I think it honestly starts with the way our practice habits go, and the carryover is what you’re seeing.”

Flagg led Dallas with 26 points and 8 assists, one of them the no-look pass to Martin. Martin played 5:20 in the first half and 8:29 after halftime, and three of his four baskets came in the second half.

“Caleb looked great. Obviously, he’s been rehabbing his hand and trying to get back for a little while, but I thought he looked really good. Caleb’s a connector and can just connect different guys. He’s not selfish and trying to worry about scoring all the time. He’s gonna be a connector out there for us,” Flagg said.

“I think a lot of little things that he does make us a lot better on both sides of the ball,” Flagg added. “Yeah, he made a couple shots today, but I think just for Caleb, it’s the connecting stuff that he does, all the little things that he brings to this team, that can bring us to another level.”

Dallas hosts the Houston Rockets on Friday at American Airlines Center, with tip-off set for 7 p.m. CT.