NBA Notes: Cavs, Sam Merrill, Mavericks, Cooper Flagg, Spurs, Victor Wembanyama

Cavaliers

The Cavaliers have yet to resemble the team that finished with the top seed in the Eastern Conference a season ago, but the past two nights have offered a reminder of what they can look like when healthy, or at least healthier.

Cleveland has been without key contributors for much of the season. Evan Mobley and Darius Garland both missed extended stretches, Max Strus has yet to make his season debut, and depth has been tested nightly. But one return is already paying dividends.

Sam Merrill rejoined the lineup Monday against Charlotte, and the offense has responded immediately. The Cavaliers poured in 139 points against the Hornets, then followed with 141 in Tuesday’s win over New Orleans, their second- and third-highest outputs of the season.

Against Charlotte, Cleveland hit 55 percent of its three-point attempts, with Donovan Mitchell scoring 30. Tuesday brought similar efficiency. The Cavs shot 41 percent from deep, Mitchell led the way with 27, and Merrill chipped in 22 points while going 6-of-10 from three, adding seven assists and six rebounds.

Asked whether one player can really loosen things up that much, Mitchell didn’t hesitate.

“Yeah,” he said. “I think it’s really as simple as pointing in his direction.”

Mitchell explained that Merrill’s presence in the corner forces defenses to stay honest, opening lanes when Mitchell draws extra attention.

With Cleveland sitting near the bottom third of the league in three-point percentage overall, getting Merrill back healthy matters.

Mavericks

The Mavericks pulled off one of their most impressive wins of the season Tuesday night, edging Denver 131-130 behind another fine performance from rookie Cooper Flagg.

Flagg finished with 33 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists in 40 minutes, playing well beyond his years in a game that demanded poise. Nuggets center Nikola Jokic noticed.

“He was definitely a hot hand out there,” Jokic told reporters. “But the poise that he played with, he doesn’t feel like he’s so young. He looked really mature out there.”

Denver coach David Adelman echoed the sentiment, pointing to Flagg’s shot-making late in the clock.

“It was the tough shots,” Adelman said. “Some of the threes late in the clock. He got to his spots. Bruce Brown really fought him in the second half and he still made big shots. He’s very impressive.”

After a slow opening to the season, Flagg has surged in December, averaging 24.1 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 4.5 assists. Dallas is 6-4 this month after opening the year 6-15, and Flagg has quickly become the league’s leading Rookie of the Year candidate.

Spurs

The Spurs extended their winning streak to seven with a 130-110 win over Oklahoma City, but the box score included an unusual note. Victor Wembanyama did not record a block for the first time in nearly a year.

Wembanyama finished with 12 points, five rebounds, and three assists in 23 minutes, continuing a minutes restriction following his return from a left calf strain. He has averaged just 21 minutes over six games since coming back.

The absence of a block ended a streak of 101 consecutive games, the longest in franchise history and the third-longest in NBA history behind Patrick Ewing and Dikembe Mutombo.

San Antonio sits at 22-7 and will see the Thunder again Thursday on Christmas Day, a rematch that comes with plenty of intrigue, even if the stat sheet looked a little different this time.