The Dallas Mavericks (14-8) faltered in the third quarter of a tough, physical game against the Memphis Grizzlies (14-8) at American Airlines Center on Tuesday, then rallied in the fourth quarter for the most unlikely of 121-116 wins. Amid all the excitement surrounding the momentous comeback, the victory also qualifies Dallas for the knockout rounds of the NBA Cup.

Luka Dončić, Dereck Lively II, Klay Thompson and Kyrie Irving all returned from injuries on Tuesday, and Dončić picked up where he left off in the first half after a 36-point, 13-assist performance on 137 on Sunday -131 win at the Portland Trail Blazers. He led all scorers with 37 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Spencer Dinwiddie and PJ Washington hit three huge 3-pointers in the final 1:30 of the game to give the Mavs the lead in the decisive minute.

The Mavs managed 25 turnovers and shot just 20 of 34 at the free throw line in the win.

The game had a playoff feel from the first tip. Jaren Jackson Jr. hit his first two 3-pointers early for the Grizzlies, but so did Dončić for the Mavs. His open 3-ball on the left wing with rookie Jaylen Wells’ hand in the face gave the Mavericks a 19-15 lead with just over five minutes to play.

Dallas maintained that four-point lead for the remainder of the first quarter, but was unable to generate consistent offense in Dončić’s backup minutes. Thanks to a late three-pointer and a tip dunk from Santi Aldama two possessions later, Memphis took a 26-25 lead after scoring.

Dereck Lively II came out with fireworks in the second period, converting an alley-oop from Dončić on the second possession of the quarter and completing a fast break with another jam the next time after Dončić threw a loose ball at the Grizzlies’ goal. Previous ownership. Lively’s rim rocker just a minute later on a pick-and-roll with Klay Thompson gave the Mavs a 33-30 lead with 10:30 left in the second.

Just a minute later, Dončić scored his third consecutive three-pointer of the game. He heaved down the right wing before the defense had a chance to gain possession and used the make to force a Memphis timeout. The Mavs were ahead 38:32 and Dončić led all scorers up to that point with 15 points on 4 of 5 shooting. If three in a row wasn’t impressive enough for you, a minute later he hit another one off leg and about five feet behind the 3-point line to give the Mavs a 41-32 lead.

Dallas extended the lead to 10, but Dončić’s bench minutes struck again late in the second period. Kyrie Irving, who barely got into an offensive rhythm in the first half, picked up his third foul with just under three minutes left in the first half. That came in the middle of a 12-0 run in Memphis that briefly gave the Grizzlies a 52-50 lead, but back-to-back 3-pointers from PJ Washington and Quentin Grimes put Dallas back in the lead. Dallas went into halftime with a 60-57 lead.

Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images

But the Grizzlies scored the first 10 points of the third quarter as Ja Morant made it his mission to lift the Cup after scoring just four points in the first half. Dallas didn’t score for the first 3:11 of the third period before Dončić hit a floating banker, then intercepted a wayward pass the next time and converted the lay-in to quickly bring the Mavs back to within three points, trailing by 67-64 with 8:30 remaining.

The Grizzlies’ physicality and timely shots won the quarter and put the Mavericks on their heels. Memphis forced five Dallas turnovers in the first six minutes of the third quarter and 11 total in the third, a new season high for any quarter. The open shots the Mavs saw in the first half all came with a hand to the face after halftime. Grimes finally managed to break through the Grizzlies’ defense on a drive through the lane with 4:51 left in the third and converted the 3-point play after contact to put Dallas within five points, 77-72 but Memphis had an answer every time. That answer increasingly came in the form of Morant and Desmond Bane, who combined for 21 points in the third quarter.

The Grizzlies outscored the Mavs 18-10 in the final four minutes of the quarter and extended their lead to 95-82 at the end of the third quarter. The Mavs were able to match Memphis’ intensity in the first half, but couldn’t match it in the second half.

Dallas’ methodical comeback over the course of the fourth quarter took a frantic turn after Dončić hit his fifth 3-ball of the game, putting the Mavs up 111-106 with less than three minutes to play. Irving found Dinwiddie in transition for an open 3-pointer that gave Dallas a 113-111 lead less than a minute later. The next time, Dinwiddie scored another goal off an assist from Washington, extending Dallas’ lead to 116-111. Washington scored on Dallas’ next possession after a nice shot by Dončić, thwarting the Mavs’ lead at 119-113 with 27 seconds left.

For our three observations on the Mavs’ win that likely clinches their ticket to the NBA Cup quarterfinals, let’s focus on the three Mavericks who returned from multiple injury layoffs against the Grizzlies and see if we can get a glimpse can find out where their performance lies.

Heat check

Photo by Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images

If his first two games back from his wrist injury are any indication, Dončić’s game is back on its way to the stratosphere where it belongs. He had some major statistical games before the wrist injury, but that loose rhythm, that feeling that he was playing Star Trek 3-D chess while the other nine on the floor were reading the Tiddly Winks instruction manual, was again a major disadvantage Grizzlies. He hit his first four 3-pointers and provided some of those signature moments where he does things no other professional ballplayer can.

For those worried about a “slow” or “weird” start to the season for Dončić, Sunday against the Trail Blazers and Tuesday against the Grizzlies are the signs you wanted to see. He scored 23 points on 7 of 11 shooting and five rebounds in halftime Tuesday, but wasn’t as effective in the second half. With less than three minutes to play, he hit a big 3-pointer to put the Mavs up 111-106, then hit two free throws to bring Dallas within one point, making it 111 with less than two games to play -110 remained behind. Dončić finished the game with 37 points, 12 boards, four assists and four steals.

Livelier than you

Lively provided the spark the Mavericks needed early in the second quarter with three key dunks that not only gave the Mavericks the lead at that point, but also gave the Mavs a second level of offensive threat that led the team to this one The timing had not yet been shown. The problem was that no one except Lively gave Dončić much support.

Lively made a few big plays with putback dunks in the third period before Daniel Gafford made up some of the gap in the fourth period. He finished with 17 points and 11 boards in the win.

Kwestions about Klay

Thompson’s first game back from a plantar fascia injury wasn’t quite as encouraging as it was for Dončić and Lively. He hit just one of his five shot attempts and went 0 of 3 from 3-point range on his rebound. He looked like a work of art out there compared to Memphis. The biggest question mark is simply his lack of engagement with what’s going on around him at times. If he can’t get open on the perimeter or somehow expose himself because of the offense’s machinations, then why is Thompson here?

He’s got plenty of time to get back into the swing of things – we’re just looking for Thompson to give us a sign that better days are coming soon. He and Irving combined to shoot just 4 of 19 from the field and 0 of 7 from deep in securing the win.