A new season is upon us and with it comes new returning pieces here at Mavs Moneyball. One of them will be our “Game of the Week” bet, where Tyler Edsel and I, David Trink, will pick the Dallas Mavericks’ best game each week (national TV game, rivalry game, etc.) and draft four plays each (a line of play, two player props and a wild card) to compete against each other throughout the year to see who can make the most artificial money. Each of our games gives you fake money based on the payout of a $100 bet. So you benefit from accepting games with higher winning odds. We’ll both give a little background on why we chose each piece.

Today’s game is the Mavericks’ home and season opener against the San Antonio Spurs, where home fans will get their first real look at Klay Thomspon. The Spurs have revamped their roster and now feature a lineup with Chris Paul at point guard and former Maverick Harrison Barnes at forward. This should be an exciting first game with a consistent pace and the Mavericks will need willpower not to underestimate San Antonio.

Current odds as of 10:00 a.m. CST on DraftKings Sportsbook

Tyler’s Pieces

• Luka Doncic scores 9+ points in the first quarter (-120)
• Dereck Lively records a double-double (+550)
• Under 229 points (-108)
• Mavericks -2.5 1Q Spread (-112)

My first pick is my favorite on the board. Doncic is a notoriously quick starter who looks for his shot early. At this point, he was averaging 9.8 points per 1st quarter last year. I go back to the well to get it established early and often. Dereck Lively recording a double-double is also worth a sprinkle. On his debut, Lively scored 16 and 10 on Wembanyama’s head in 31 minutes. Lively will have the necessary utilization to hit this benchmark whether it launches or not. At +550 I think it’s worth the risk at the price we’re getting. I’m also reluctant to accept the undernumber of 229. The Mavs underperformed last year, finishing under the mark 56% of the time in the regular season. It won’t be fun to promote, but the number is too high considering how the games have been run since the end of last year. My final play is for the Mavericks to cover their -2.5 spread in the first quarter. I think they’ll come out firing to try and get the crowd going. Last year they weren’t a particularly good team in the first quarter, but this should be a good spot.

David’s pieces

• Kyrie Irving scores 25+ points (+125)
• Victor Wembanyama grabs more than 12 rebounds (+110)
• Spurs +8 (-108)
• Any player who scores 35+ points (+115).

Similar to Tyler, my first piece is also my favorite. Kyrie Irving will need to be more aggressive this season for the Mavericks to be successful, and that starts tonight. The Spurs don’t have anyone who can keep up with him, and he should see 21-24 shots like he did in every game against San Antonio last season. My next piece comes as a byproduct of my disagreement with Tyler. I think this game will be fast-paced and Wembanyama should see plenty of rebound opportunities. He’s put on muscle and is ready for a two-year jump, so I expect a dominant performance from him. For the same reason, I have to cover Spurs tonight. This will be a hard-fought matchup and while I wouldn’t bet on it, Klay Thompson could have a banger. Eventually, one of Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving or Victor Wembanyama will reach 35 points. The star power and pace in this game favors this play, so hopefully the rust from game one doesn’t prevent this from hitting.

Current net profits: