Dallas Mavericks

Warriors show their champion swagger with rout of Mavericks

Warriors guard Stephen Curry drives against Dallas Mavericks rookie Dennis Smith Jr., left, in the first half the Mavs’ 133-103 loss Monday night at American Airlines Center.
Warriors guard Stephen Curry drives against Dallas Mavericks rookie Dennis Smith Jr., left, in the first half the Mavs’ 133-103 loss Monday night at American Airlines Center. AP

The Mavericks kept it interesting for a half, but by the end of the third quarter, the Golden State Warriors were cruising towards a 133-103 win Monday night at American Airlines Center.

Three quick thoughts from Monday night:

1. Return of the Warriors — The defending NBA champion Warriors may have come to Dallas with a 1-2 record but they didn’t look like a scuffling unit Monday night. Steph Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson led the way with 29, 25 and 24 points and combined to make 25 of 46 shots.

2. 0-fer — Buckle up, Mavs’ fans, it could be a rough one. The Mavs dropped to 0-4 with Monday’s loss to the Warriors. The Mavs started 0-5 a year ago.

3. Rough for rookie — Mavs’ rookie guard Dennis Smith Jr., who returned to the lineup after missing two games with a knee injury, struggled from the field. He was 3 for 12 for 10 points, six rebounds and two assists. He missed 6 of 10 free-throw attempts.

Stefan Stevenson: 817-390-7760, @StevensonFWST

This story was originally published October 23, 2017 at 10:00 PM with the headline "Warriors show their champion swagger with rout of Mavericks."

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