The Dallas Mavericks and Orlando Magic boast two Duke basketball products apiece. But Magic centerpiece forward Paolo Banchero is out indefinitely with a torn right oblique, and his fellow frontcourt starter in Orlando, Wendell Carter Jr., played only nine minutes in Sunday night’s 108-85 road loss to the Mavericks before exiting with a left foot injury.
As for Dallas’ pair of NBA Blue Devils, starting guard Kyrie Irving and backup big man Dereck Lively II, both integral weapons for last season’s Western Conference champs, each played a sizeable role in the Mavericks improving to 4-2 this season via the win over the Magic (3-4).
Irving logged 28 minutes in the contest, tallying 17 points, two rebounds, three assists, two steals, and only one turnover while shooting 5-for-11 from the field, 1-for-2 from three, and 6-for-7 at the charity stripe.
And Lively, just an NBA sophomore and still a few months away from his 21st birthday, required only 20 minutes of action to record his second double-double for the 2024-25 Mavs. The 7-foot-1, 230-pounder, perhaps emerging as an early candidate for NBA Sixth Man of the Year, finished with 11 points, 11 boards, and one dime, shooting 5-for-7 from the field and 1-for-3 at the line.
Dallas hosts the Indiana Pacers (2-4) at 9:45 p.m. ET Monday.
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