A 144-119 loss to the Dallas Mavericks marks the ninth in the last 10 matchups for the San Antonio Spurs against their rivals from up I-35. And the lone win came in last season's finale when both teams — eliminated from the playoff picture — sat just about every member of their rotations, including Mavs stars Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and Tim Hardaway Jr.
The once fierce rivalry, in which the Spurs have mostly held an advantage through the years, has drastically turned.
Series history: The Luka Doncic years
The Mavs have won the season series against San Antonio in each of the last five. Beforehand, Dallas hadn't taken a series from the Spurs since 2009-2010.
A stretch that started with the 2019-2020 campaign coincides with the rise of Luka Doncic and the rebuild of the Silver and Black. That season marked the end of an NBA-record 22 straight playoff appearances. It also marked Doncic's second season and his first of four straight All-NBA First Team selections.
“None of us has the answer to how he continuously just destroys whatever defense is thrown at him,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich says of the Slovenian star.
Series history: GOAT era
The Tim Duncan and Dirk Nowitzki battles not only defined the best this rivalry had to offer but often determined the balance of power in the Southwest (previously Midwest) Division.
From 1999 to 2014, the Spurs and Mavs combined for six NBA championships, including Dallas' only title in 2011, and eight NBA Finals appearances. They met six times in the playoffs, with the Silver and Black knocking off their rivals on the way to their 2003 and '14 championships. The Mavs won a classic seven-game 2006 Western Conference Semifinals en route to their first Finals berth in franchise history. Duncan and company also beat Nowitzki and crew in the 2001 second round as well as the 2010 first round, while Dallas additionally won a 2009 opening-round matchup.
In also capturing the 1999, 2005 and 2007 titles, the Spurs compiled a significant regular-season advantage over the Mavs as well, losing only three of the season series between 1997-1998 and 2018-19.
Series history: The Texas Triangle
From the 1980s through the 1990s, a trip through the Lone Star State symbolized a death march for most NBA teams. Along with Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets, Mavs teams that featured Rolando Blackman, Derek Harper and Sam Perkins and Spurs squads highlighted by David Robinson annually qualified for the postseason.
Both the Spurs and Mavs enjoyed their longest win streaks during this time. San Antonio took control of the head-to-head count, winning 16 straight from 1991 to 1994 as Dallas transitioned to an era that included Jason Kidd, Jimmy Jackson and Jamal Mashburn. The Mavs reeled of nine straight victories from 1987 to 1989 at a time when NBA scheduling had divisional foes face each other six times per season as opposed to the standard four meetings now.
Series history: The dawn of a Spurs-Mavs rivalry
The Mavs started play in 1980 and beat the Spurs in their inaugural matchup. Though the Silver and Black, led by George Gervin, won 15 of the fist 19 meetings, Dallas eventually turned the tide with the ascent of the aforementioned core. In fact, even after David Robinson's rookie year, which at time time marked the league's biggest single-season turnaround, Dallas held its biggest advantage in the head-to-head count at 33-26.
The regular-season series history now stands at 115-82 in favor of the Spurs. While the 33-game difference still strongly favors SA, it's significantly down from the 44-game disparity the Silver and Black enjoyed just four years ago.
Follow Us
Subscribe