‘From Bad To Good’: Dusty May Says Dallas Mavericks Are In Position But Not Finishing Defensive Rebounds
DALLAS — The San Antonio Spurs grabbed 22 offensive rebounds against the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night, and Mavericks coach Dusty May named defensive rebounding as the main area to clean up before Friday’s game against the Utah Jazz.
Victor Wembanyama had 9 of those offensive boards among his 24 rebounds in San Antonio’s 112-111 win, and the Spurs won the rebounding battle 61-50. Wembanyama scored on two putbacks in the final 2:39. Dallas finished with 32 defensive rebounds.
The second half in San Antonio showed May that Dallas can compete with the best teams in the NBA when its mind is right and it plays with the right sense of urgency, he said. The Mavericks held the Spurs to 44 points after halftime.
“I’ll just focus on Spurs,” May said. “These games come at you so quick. The San Antonio [game], because of our recency, recent memory. We played with the right amount of edge in the second half, and there’s a few areas that we have to clean up. The defensive rebound being the main one.”
“We’re being careful not to chase too many rabbits and just fix the most glaring issues,” May continued. “And so there’s a couple that we want to get fixed based on our performance over the last eight games.”
Dusty May Says Dallas Mavericks Are In The Right Spots
May wants Dallas quicker to the ball and going up to high-point rebounds. P.J. Washington and Cooper Flagg grabbed 10 rebounds apiece Wednesday, and no other Maverick had more than 6.
“It’s more general. The analytics say we’re in the right position, and we’re not coming up with enough of them,” May said. “And I think back over the course of the year, there’s been several that we’ve done all the necessary work. We’re in position to get it, and maybe we fumble it out of bounds. Or there were a couple where maybe Dylan Harper and those guys from the Spurs just came and took a ball that was a 50-50 ball.”
“And so now we’re just trying to really analyze,” May continued. “Okay, if we get two of those back a half, if we finish two of those possessions a half, does that move us into the top 20? Or do we … So right now we’re trying to figure out like what’s … We’re never going to be a rebounding team overnight, but we can go from bad to good, and then eventually get great if we change these few things. And so we’re still taking a look at it. But right now, I think [if] we just get a few of those back with a little more determination, we make a big jump.”
Harper, the second overall pick in 2025, scored 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting with 5 rebounds Wednesday. San Antonio has beaten Dallas twice this season, including a 122-106 win on Oct. 24 at American Airlines Center.
Utah Jazz Arrive Without Jaren Jackson Jr. And Jusuf Nurkić
Utah (1-7) has lost six straight and is without Jaren Jackson Jr. (right MCL tear) and Jusuf Nurkić (right second plantar plate tear). Ace Bailey leads the Jazz at 7.3 rebounds per game.
Washington leads Dallas at 8.0 rebounds per game. Dereck Lively II remains out after right foot surgery, and Santi Aldama is probable to make his Mavericks debut.
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. CT at American Airlines Center in the Mavericks’ second NBA Cup group game.
