Rick Carlisle praised Dennis Smith Jr.'s return to the Dallas Mavericks lineup after their 106-98 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Smith, who missed the previous 6 games due to what Carlisle described as "business stuff", finished with 17 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists.

The win snapped the Mavs' 4-game losing streak.

"I thought it was great, just really tremendous. Everything we needed -- speed, attacking, shot-making, a couple of amazing assists," said Carlisle of Smith's performance.

Smith added that he and Luka Doncic play well together despite the stats.

"I feel like we do pretty well on the court together. Stats and everything will tell something else, but there's so many things that go into all those analytics that people like to look into. That's why I don't bother with that. I feel like me and him, we respect one another on and off the court. It's a mutual respect for each other's game as well, so I don't feel like it's ever been an issue. I feel like it's looked way too much into."