Mavericks @ Celtics

Who will WIN this matchup?

Dallas Mavericks (6-3)

@ Boston Celtics (7-1)

Current odds:

Dallas Mavericks: (+140)

Boston Celtics: (-160)

• The line for this game is Celtics by 3 points.

• The Boston Celtics are steamrolling through opponents since a season-opening loss, with Gordon Hayward’s dominant play a big reason why. They will have to press on without Hayward for now after the former All-Star broke his left hand, beginning with a Monday night matchup with the visiting Dallas Mavericks. “I was in shock,” Boston point guard Kemba Walker told reporters of Hayward’s injury during a 135-115 win at San Antonio on Saturday, the team’s seventh victory in a row. “In those kinds of situations, it’s kind of hard to say anything. You just don’t even know what to say sometimes. We’re going to miss him for the time that he’s out.” Prior to Saturday’s contest, Hayward had a four-game run that saw him average 23.3 points on 62.5 percent shooting to go along with nine rebounds and 6.3 assists.

• The Celtics will look for Walker and others to step up against a Mavericks team that comes to town with an NBA-best 4-0 road record. Luka Doncic fell just shy of his fifth triple-double of the season in just three quarters of action to lead Dallas to a 138-122 win at Memphis on Saturday.

• Star forward Kristaps Porzingis was rested in Memphis but Doncic made that a complete non-factor by recording his 24 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists in 29 minutes. He wasn’t needed down the stretch thanks to a bench that contributed 67 points, led by Tim Hardaway Jr’s 20 in 22 minutes. “It was a really good effort from start to finish,” coach Rick Carlisle told reporters. “Had a real even contribution from top to bottom. The second unit, obviously came in and was very strong.”

• Jaylen Brown picked up much of the slack after Hayward departed by scoring a season-high 30 points in his second game back from an illness. Boston shot 51.1 percent and had a season-low eight turnovers in its best offensive output of the season, but the postgame talk was all about Hayward, who is expected to miss at least a month and could need surgery. “This one doesn’t feel near as bad as it did two years ago,” coach Brad Stevens told reporters, referencing the leg injury that cost Hayward the 2017-18 season. “So, he’ll be back. Be off for a few weeks or a month or whatever it is.”

• Celtics C Enes Kanter (knee) has missed each of his team’s seven straight wins.

• Mavericks SF Justin Jackson scored a season-high 17 points while making 4-of-7 3-pointers at Memphis.

• The teams split a pair of meetings last season and Boston has won three straight matchups at home.