Getty Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks.
The Dallas Mavericks will have a shot to avenge Friday’s tough loss to the Charlotte Hornets in Sunday’s rematch on the road. Dallas dropped the first game, after an abysmal first-half where they allowed Charlotte to hang 69 points on their defense.
Ahead of his team’s chance for redemption, Mavs head coach Jason Kidd explained the he hoped to see a happier Luka Doncic running up and down the floor.
“You have to give him credit for saying that,” Kidd said in response to Doncic’s comments about being unhappy, two days prior. “He’s human. He spoke his truth. … As an organization, our job is to help, so we’re helping. Hopefully you see that smile today and that swagger. I’ll bet that you see it.”
Jason Kidd on Luka Doncic’s frustration and lack of joy: “You have to give him credit for saying that. He’s human. He spoke his truth. … As an organization, our job is to help, so we’re helping. Hopefully you see that smile today and that swagger. I’ll bet that you see it.”
Doncic’s rant about being unhappy came after a loss that saw the Mavericks slip out of position for a postseason spot. They fell to 11th place in the Western Conference following their 38th defeat of the year.
“It’s really frustrating,” Doncic said Friday via the Fanatics YouTube channel. “I think you can see it with me on the court. Sometimes, I don’t feel it’s me. Just being out there. I used to have [a lot of] fun. Smiling on the court. But it’s just been so frustrating. For a lot of reasons, not just basketball.”
Jason Kidd Goes on Rant After Mavs Fall to Hornets
Kidd was just as unhappy as Doncic on Friday. He slammed his team after their embarrassing loss to the Hornets, who have the league’s fourth-worst record.
“That was awful. Dog****,” Kidd said via Sports Illustrated’s Grant Afseth. “Just understanding the talk before the game of what we’re playing for, playoffs or championship, and to come out, you know, in that first half, but more or less the first quarter and give up 37, the interest level wasn’t high, you know? You know, disappointing… When you look at our two guys, I think they were 3-of-17 from the three. (We) got great looks, they just didn’t go down.”
When asked about the Mavericks’ effort level in the first half after giving up 69 points to the Hornets, Jason Kidd described the effort as “dogshit.”
“That was awful. Dogshit. Just understanding the talk before the game of what we’re playing for, playoffs or championship, and…
Kyrie Irving Sounds Off After Mavs Beaten by Hornets
Friday felt like a day where frustrations just boiled over all around. Kyrie Irving also had plenty to say when speaking to the media.
He voiced his aggravation with the focus always being on him and Doncic, rather than the entire team when things don’t go well.
“I mean, not really. I didn’t imagine [this],” Irving said via the Fanatics View YouTube channel. “I expect to win every ball game that I play. So, that’s the attitude I go on with. But the reality is what it in. We are 3-7. But again, it’s a team basketball game. As much as people want to put it on me and Luka, it’s a team basketball game, and we talk about that in a locker room. Everyone loves to point fingers at what we’re doing, but it’s a team-aspect game. And I feel like when we focus on our team aspect, that’s when we get clear answers. But when we focus on two guys and what our numbers are and whether we can play better, it limits all the other guys and their capabilities in that locker room, and I don’t want to do that. I believe in each one of those guys. And when I was coming here, I knew that giving up Dorian Finney-Smith or giving up Spencer [Dinwiddie], that was gonna be a change to any lineup that they had going o. Different minutes. Guys get in and out of the lineup. I haven’t necessarily been as healthy as I would like to be at this point in the season. Other guys haven’t been as healthy. e and Luka as well, more importantly. But again, there’s no time for excuses. We just got to lace them up and get ready.”