Getty Dallas Mavericks center DeAndre Jordan
It’s apparently the ‘DeAndre way’ or the highway for the Dallas Mavericks center. While DeAndre Jordan has gotten off to a solid start to the 2018-19 NBA season, there are apparently issues looming behind closed doors. The Mavericks, who are building around an impressive young core which is headlined by Luka Doncic and Dennis Smith Jr., had hoped Jordan would become a veteran leader.
According to a recent from ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, it seems the situation has been just the opposite. As MacMahon revealed, Jordan has “rubbed teammates the wrong way” due to his selfish play.
“Don’t be deceived by DeAndre Jordan’s solid statistics. He has been a major disappointment for the Mavs. He has rubbed teammates the wrong way with what they perceive as selfish play, the most blatant example being when he stole an uncontested rebound from Luka Doncic by putting his forearm in the prized rookie’s back and tipping the ball away. Jordan’s disinterest in playing help defense has been a big problem as Mavs opponents light up the scoreboard.”
If you haven’t seen the play in which Jordan tips a rebound away from Doncic, here’s a look at how that played out, courtesy of The Render:
DeAndre Jordan’s Production With Mavericks
It’s certainly interesting to hear this come out, and it’ll be worth monitoring to see if Jordan responds to these comments. The biggest issue of all is certainly the 30-year-old’s reported selfish play and how it’s going over with teammates. Even beyond that, the fact that he’s lacked interest in certain defensive areas is a whole other concern.
On the season, Jordan is averaging 11.2 points, 13.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.3 blocks per game. He’s shot 62.4 percent from the field while making an astonishing 81.3 percent of his free throw attempts. For a player who’s never made more than 58 percent from the line before, that number is eye-opening.
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