Player Grades: Recapping the Mavericks vs. the Bulls
Game 82 is in the books for the Dallas Mavericks , as they took on the Chicago Bulls Sunday night in what resulted in a 149-128 win. The Mavericks finish the season with a 26-56 record, good for either the seventh or eighth worst record in the league, as the Mavs and Pelicans end the season with identical records and will need to go to a coin flip.
That concludes the 2025-2026 season for the Mavs and with it our game-specific Grades coverage. Thank you to all our readers who joined the conversation as we doled out grades game after game!
Let’s get to the grades!
Ryan Nembhard : A+
15 PTS / 9 REB / 23 AST / 2 STL / 0 BLK – 38 MIN
Nembhard broke Jason Kidd’s long-standing record for assists in a single game by a Mavs’ rookie. Kidd had 17 to take the top spot, and Nembhard overtook him midway through the third quarter. The fact he was within shouting distance of Scott Skiles’ NBA record 30 assists is nothing short of astonishing. The fact he did it with only four turnovers is almost mind-boggling. He now holds the second highest assist total in a game in Mavs’ history (Kidd; 25).
Max Christie : A-
12 PTS / 1 REB / 1 AST / 0 STL / 2 BLK – 13 MIN
Fan Appreciation night had the Mavs rolling almost across the board. Christie was red-hot, scoring nearly a point-per-minute on 5-for-7 shooting including 2-for-4 from deep. The quick release he learned from Klay Thompson appears to be paying dividends. He showed some solid defense with an unlikely two blocks as well.
Cooper Flagg: N/A
10 PTS / 4 REB / 1 AST / 1 STL / 0 BLK – 10 MIN
As much as I would love to give Flagg a grade, his rolled ankle after only 10 minutes of play lands him with the “N/A.” It’s a shame in the last game of his rookie campaign, but especially so since he was on his way to a great night. He shot 4-for-8 from the floor and knocked down both of his free throw attempts in a point-per-minute effort. He will end the season as the first rookie to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists and steals since Michael Jordan in 1984-1985.
Khris Middleton : N/A
8 PTS / 1 REB / 1 AST / 0 STL / 0 BLK – 6 MIN
Another weird one, as the veteran Middleton was looking good before checking out after six minutes of play. While there isn’t nearly enough to grade on, Middleton did go 2-for-3 from the floor (all beyond the arc) for a highly affective half-quarter of play.
Dwight Powell : B+
7 PTS / 12 REB / 2 AST / 1 STL / 0 BLK – 24 MIN
Powell had a heck of a night on the boards to really drive his grade up. He went 3-for-4 from the floor and fell down at least once (though I don’t believe he got hit in the face, which is an oddity for him). Four fouls were the only real knock on his game.
Klay Thompson: N/A
12 PTS / 0 REB / 1 AST / 1 STL / 0 BLK – 10 MIN
Thompson falls into the “N/A” category along with a few others, due to the very limited minutes, but this was a nice end to the season for him. He needed two three-pointers to make 200 on the season, and he knocked in four of them to leave no doubt. He also made his way into the top 100 scorers in NBA history Sunday night.
John Poulakidas : A+
28 PTS / 2 REB / 4 AST / 1 STL / 1 BLK – 36 MIN
Poulakidas went nuts from beyond the arc, shooting a blistering 8-for-16 (9-for-18 overall). Despite all of that shooting, he also managed to dish a few assists. It was a lot of fun to see him shooting with confidence and knocking down shot after shot, often with a hand in his face. He’s certainly a shooter, so it will be interesting to see what he can do for the Mavs in the future, especially as they are in such need of deep threats.
AJ Johnson : A-
20 PTS / 1 REB / 1 AST / 0 STL / 0 BLK – 25 MIN
Johnson tied for the second most points on the team on a solidly efficient 6-for-12 from the floor. He couldn’t connect from deep (0-for-3) but got himself to the free throw line with frequency, hitting 8-for-9. His team-high five turnovers dinged his grade a bit, but this was basically the best we’ve seen him play since coming to Dallas.
Tyler Smith: A+
20 PTS / 7 REB / 0 AST / 2 STL / 0 BLK – 37 MIN
Smith was basically an A+ in his first 12 minutes of play, much less the game overall. Part of that was due to the lack of precedence and playing time heretofore, but he had himself a very nice well-rounded game.
Moussa Cisse : A+
17 PTS / 20 REB / 1 AST / 2 STL / 2 BLK – 41 MIN
Cisse was an absolute beast with a 20-rebound double-double. He played solid defense in a game that was never really in question, getting two steals and two blocks. He did foul a bit too much (four) and turned it over three times, but going 5-for-6 from the free throw line and splitting his total boards evenly between the offensive and defensive glass (that’s right – 10 offensive rebounds) catapulted him to the top marks.
Final thoughts
Make no mistake, this game was hot garbage in terms of the Bulls putting up absolutely zero resistance. While that may make one think the grades should be scaled accordingly, I couldn’t help but give out high marks purely on the basis so many Mavs not only did well as would be expected, but vastly outplayed even the most ambitious expectations. These guys wanted to show out, and just about every single player did just that, all while playing within the game and helping each other to be their best for 48-minutes.
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