The Dallas Mavericks get set to clash against the Portland Trail Blazers inside the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. They tip it off at 8:30 pm.  Bookmaker has installed the Mavericks as a heavy -11 point favorite. 

The Mavericks (20-15) have won two out of three and they are playing some decent ball of late. They can get up and down the floor and they have a bunch of different scorers on the floor on any given night. They are led on offense by Luka Doncic, who is averaging around 33 points per game to go along with close to ten assists per night. They are also coming off a 126-97 win over these same Trail Blazers.

Dallas looks for him to get the offense going and he is the catalyst behind everything. He can put the ball on the floor and he can create his own shot. Point guard Kyrie Irving has also played well for Dallas and when he is engaged and on the floor the Mavericks offense hits all strides. 

For the season, Dallas is connecting on close to 49% from the floor, including around 36% from beyond the arc. They are not the best three-point shooting team but Irving knows how to find the open man. 

The Trail Blazers (9-24) have not had a good season at all and they are trying to turn things around. They have a horrible record and they are also in the midst of a rebuilding process. The issue is that they do not have a balance-scoring attack. 

They have dropped two of three and three of four overall. Anfernee Simmons is their best scorer and option on the floor. He is averaging close to 26 a night and has the ability to erupt for 30 plus if they need that type of scoring output. 

They also rely on small forward Jerami Grant who is chipping in with 21 points a night. As a whole, Portland connects on 55% from the floor, including 33% from beyond the arc. They need to do a better job of defending the perimeter and they also need to control the paint. If they can do that, they can keep this game close. They should be able to keep this game close heading into the fourth quarter and if they can contain Irving they can cover the number here. 

Dallas is 2-3 in their last five games and 3-2 in their last five games against the spread too. They are also 12-7 in their road games against the spread. The totals have gone over in just one out of their last five games. Portland is 2-3 in their last five games and 2-3 in their last five games against the spread. They are a solid 9-8 in their road games against the spread. The totals have gone over in two out of their last five games.