Luka-less Mavs take on Grizzlies

The Dallas Mavericks continue to show they can perform in the face of adversity and will get another chance to prove it Wednesday, when they play host to the Memphis Grizzlies.Without Luka Doncic because of a sprained ankle, the Mavericks have earned consecutive victories, with multiple contributors stepping up to fill the void left by their injured All-Star.Kristaps Porzingis scored 38 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in a 112-103 road victory over the Indiana Pacers on Monday. That win came two days after Jalen Brunson scored 27 points and Willie Cauley-Stein grabbed 10 rebounds in a 123-100 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.Not only is it Doncic’s second sprained ankle this season, but Porzingis also missed 10 games with a knee injury. Since Jan. 1, Doncic and Porzingis have been on the court together just five times. It means the Mavericks have learned how to adapt.”Our style changes — a more free-flowing style,” head coach Rick Carlisle told reporters when asked about the team’s look without Doncic. “We call less plays. We’ve done this enough now that guys are getting a feel on how to play with each other when Luka is out, which is good when Luka is out. But we need Luka back.”The Mavericks have five games remaining before the All-Star break and hope to get Doncic back for at least two of those. That means they’ll be in free-flow against the Grizzlies, whom Dallas defeated 138-122 on Nov. 9. Doncic had 24 points and 14 rebounds in that game.Wednesday’s game is the first of three between the Mavericks and Grizzlies before the end of the regular season.Memphis will enter with five victories in its past six games, including a 96-82 triumph at home over the Detroit Pistons on Monday. Jonas Valanciunas had 26 points and 17 rebounds against the Pistons.The Grizzlies’ defense also rose to the occasion. Memphis held Detroit to 10 points in the third quarter and just 29 in the second half. The Grizzlies also had a season-best 12 blocked shots.But lately, Memphis has been influenced by more than its offense and defense. The team appears to be unifying over the possible trade of Andre Iguodala, who has refused to play for the organization since being acquired during the offseason.The Grizzlies’ Dillon Brooks spoke out about the situation this week. It’s hard to think anybody on the team objected to his take.”It’s not a distraction at all; I laugh at that type of stuff,” Brooks told reporters this week. “A guy that’s on our team that doesn’t want to be on our team, I can’t wait till we find a way to trade him so we can play him and show him really what Memphis is all about.”Brooks has been leading on the court, too, with 16.1 points per game overall and 20.5 points over the past six games. Rookie Ja Morant has averaged 17.3 points and 7.1 assists, with that assist number up to 8.4 over his last 12 games.