Tip-off: Thursday, 10:35 p.m. ET
Line: Portland -2.5, Total: 208

The Mavericks attempt to win their fourth game in a row when they visit the Trail Blazers on Thursday night.

Dallas absorbed its one loss this season by just one point in the opener against the Spurs when it fell 101-100 as a 3.5-point underdog on the road. Since then, the Mavs have gone 3-0 SU (2-1 ATS) while scoring at least 109 points each time. They hosted the Celtics most recently on Monday and won 118-113 while failing to cover the nine-point spread. Dallas shot over 51% from the field for the third consecutive game in the win. Portland started out the season with a big 106-89 victory as a 9-point favorite against the hurting Thunder, but followed that with SU and ATS losses to both Sacramento and Golden State. The Blazers were able to bounce back in a big way on Tuesday though with a huge 101-82 win as 2.5-point home underdogs over the star-studded Cavaliers. In that mild upset, they made 49.3% FG and turned the ball over a mere 11 times while holding LeBron James and his teammates to just 36.5% shooting. The Mavericks have done very well in this matchup and are 5-2 SU (6-1 ATS) since the start of the 2012-13 season while covering the spread in each of the three contests in Portland. Last season, Dallas won the lone meeting away from home, edging the Blazers 108-106 as a 5.5-point underdog while hitting 46-of-87 shots (53% FG). Bettors should know that the Mavericks are 32-15 ATS (68%) in road games since the start of last season, but they are only 8-19 ATS after two straight games with five or less steals under head coach Rick Carlisle. Injuries should not change this game too much, as SF Al-Farouq Aminu (knee) is questionable for Dallas.

Can the Blazers put an end to the Mavericks win streak on Thursday night? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks throughout the entire 2014-15 season. StatFox Zach posted a 54% ATS mark (65-56-4) in NBA Best Bets last season, while StatFox Forecaster had a 53.4% ATS (207-181-12) in featured games last season. StatFox Scott and StatFox Gary are both off to a great start to the 2014-15 campaign, as Scott is 71% ATS (5-2) and Gary is 63% ATS (5-3). The five experts have combined for a 54.3% ATS record (19-16) in NBA Best Bets.

Dallas has been the NBA's best offensive team so far in this young season with 111.8 PPG on 52.4% FG and has scored in triple-figures in all four games. The Mavs have needed to score so many points because their defense has surrendered at least 100 points in every game as well, while allowing opponents to make 45.3% of their shots. PF Dirk Nowitzki (20.8 PPG, 5.5 RPG) is coming off his best performance of the season on Monday, as he went for 27 points, seven rebounds and four assists while making all four of his three-point attempts. Over his long career, Nowitzki has faced Portland 55 times (54 starts) and averaged 20.6 PPG (46% FG) and 7.7 RPG. SF Chandler Parsons (18.8 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 44% threes) has scored 20+ points in each of his past three games while hitting half of his shots on the season. In his 10 career games against the Trail Blazers as a member of Houston, Parsons tallied 13.1 PPG (44% FG) and 6.8 RPG. SG Monta Ellis (17.8 PPG, 5.3 APG) has 14+ points in each game this season and has also performed well (18.5 PPG, 4.9 APG, 3.9 RPG) in his 26 career games (23 starts) against Portland.

The Blazers have one of the most fast-paced offenses in the NBA but have scored just 97.8 PPG so far while making only 43.6% of their field goals. Their defense has stepped up though while allowing their opponents to score a meager 92.2 PPG (40.9% FG) and has allowed even fewer points (88.7 PPG) in three home games. PF LaMarcus Aldridge (22.8 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.3 BPG) has not been hitting the boards as well this season with just one double-digit rebounding performance, but he has dropped 22 or more points in 3-of-4 contests. He’s never had any issues when facing the Mavericks in 26 career meetings (24 starts), dropping 22.2 PPG (51% FG) and grabbing 8.9 RPG when facing them. PG Damian Lillard (17.0 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 4.8 APG) finally put it all together in his last game, going for 27 points, six rebounds and seven assists after shooting a poor 11-for-41 (27% FG) in his first three games. He has not done well when playing Dallas though, averaging 16.1 PPG on a dismal 33% FG with 6.0 APG. SG Wesley Matthews (19.3 PPG, 4.5 RPG) has made up for Lillard’s struggles early on while making 55% of his shots and has scored 12.9 PPG (43% FG) over 17 career meetings (14 starts) in this matchup.