Getty Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks will host the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Despite Jimmy Butler’s trade request, the All-Star wing took the floor in a Minnesota Timberwolves uniform for their season opener on Wednesday. He, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Andrew Wiggins will visit rookie Luka Doncic at the American Airlines Center for the Dallas Mavericks’ home opener on Saturday.
The game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on Fox Sports North (in Timberwolves markets) and Fox Sports Southwest (in Mavericks markets). If you don’t have cable or can’t get to a TV, you can still watch a live stream of the game (or DVR it) on your computer, phone, tablet or streaming device by signing up for one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
How to Watch Timberwolves vs Mavericks Online if You’re in Market
Fox Sports North (local markets) and Fox Sports Southwest (local markets) are included in the main Fubo bundle, which has 85 total channels and is tailored towards sports. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the game on your computer via the FuboTV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the FuboTV app.
If you can’t watch live, FuboTV comes with 30 hours of Cloud DVR (with the ability to upgrade to 500 hours), as well as a “72-Hour Lookback” feature, which allows you to watch games up to three days after they air even if you forgot to record them.
In addition to a Netflix-like on-demand streaming library, Hulu also offers a bundle of 50-plus live TV channels, including Fox Sports North (local markets) and Fox Sports Southwest (local markets). You can sign up for “Hulu with Live TV” right here, and you can then watch a live stream of the game on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Hulu app.
If you can’t watch live, “Hulu with Live TV” comes with 50 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of DVR space and the ability to fast forward through commercials).
Fox Sports North (local markets) and Fox Sports Southwest (local markets) are included in the “Sling Blue” channel package. You can sign up for a free 7-day trial right here, and you can then watch the game live on your computer via the Sling TV website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Sling TV app.
If you can’t watch live, you can get 50 hours of cloud DVR storage as an additional add-on.
How to Watch Timberwolves vs Mavericks Online if You’re Out of Market
If you live outside of the Timberwolves vs Mavericks area, all out-of-market, non-nationally televised games can be watched through NBA League Pass. You can sign up and watch through a number of different platforms:
You can sign up for either NBA League Pass, which lets you watch all out-of-market games, or NBA Team Pass, which lets you watch all of one team’s games if they’re out of market. Once signed up, you’ll be able to watch games on your computer via the NBA.com website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the NBA app.
If you have FuboTV or sign up for a new subscription, you can add NBA League Pass to your channel bundle. After signing up, you’ll be able to watch games on your computer via the Fubo website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Fubo app.
If you have Sling TV or sign up for a new subsription, you can add NBA League Pass or NBA Team Pass to your channel bundle. Once signed up, you’ll be able to watch games on your computer via the Sling website, or on your phone, tablet or streaming device via the Sling app.
Preview
“I got 81 games, baby,” Butler said after a 112-108 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday, according to the Associated Press.
“That’s all that matters. We gotta lock in on today, what tomorrow brings, and see where we’re at. If that comes to be, that comes to be; there’s nothing I can do about it. But in the meantime, I gotta figure out a way to help us win some games.”
The squad bounced back with a 131-123 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night, powered by Butler’s productive night — 33 points, four steals, and two blocks. The star wing was jeered by some hometown fans early in the contest.
“I knew as soon as I made an effort play, it was going to turn into cheers,” Butler said, per AP. “I like it, though. Like I told you, `It’s OK to boo me. I’m still going to play hard. I’m still going to try to my best to help win games. Boos, cheers, silence, I’ve got a job to do.”
The Mavericks lost their season opener too in a matchup of two of the year’s most-hyped rookies, falling to Deandre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns 121-100.
The Suns finished dead last in points per game a season ago, and scored 121 or more points just five times. They did most of their damage in the first and last periods, scoring 75 points combined.
“Forty-six points (allowed) in the second and third quarters is pretty decent,” Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisles told AP. “… but 75 combined in the first and fourth is disastrous.”
In his regular season debut, Doncic shot poorly, scoring 10 points on 5-of-16 shooting, including 0-of-5 from three-point range. The third overall pick of the 2018 NBA Draft pitched in eight rebounds and four assists, flashing his elite vision with this behind-the-back pocket pass to new Mavs center DeAndre Jordan.
Doncic sweet dime alert.
The 19-year-old Slovenian told AP that he “was really happy that I could make my dream come true, but it wasn’t the best game.”
The Timberwolves won all four of their meetings with the Mavericks in 2017-18.