Getty Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks.
With their playoff hopes very much in the balance, the Dallas Mavericks dropped a crucial game to the Miami Heat Saturday. Dallas’ 129-122 loss marked their sixth in seven games, leaving them a game behind the Oklahoma City Thunder for the final Western Conference Play-In Tournament spot.
After watching his team come up short, head coach Jason Kidd discussed his offensive gameplan, in situations where Luka Doncic is feeling it.
“I think when you have those types of players and Luka [Doncic] is going, putting Kai [Kyrie Irving] in the corner to create space, he’s patient enough to understand the ball will find him at times,” Kidd said via Sports Illustrated’s Grant Afseth. “I thought when Luka and Maxi [Kleber] or Luka and DP [Dwight Powell] in the pick-and-roll, or Timmy [Tim Hardaway Jr.], it created a problem for the defense and understanding that Luka was great getting downhill — layups or creating open shots [for teammates]. Sometimes you use great players for gravity and creating space, and that’s what Kai did there late.”
I asked Mavericks coach Jason Kidd about Kyrie Irving’s role in the clutch offense, given he has spent much time in the corner lately.
“I think when you have those types of players and Luka [Doncic] is going, putting Kai [Kyrie Irving] in the corner to create space, he’s…
Doncic had himself a game in Miami. He scored an efficient 42 points, while shooting 17-of-25 from the field. The 24-year-old also grabbed 10 rebounds and dished 8 assists in the loss to the Heat.
Doc Rivers Speaks On Mavs’ Luka Doncic & Kyrie Irving
While Kidd is left with a bit of a dilemma when it comes to balancing the offense with both Irving and Doncic on the floor, opposing coaches have to gameplan to stop the explosive duo.
Following the Mavs’ recent loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, head coach Doc Rivers discussed his strategy when defending Irving and Doncic.
“We switched a lot of it,’ Rivers said via the TJ Sports USA YouTube channel. “The second half we switched… Because it’s tough. We trap one, which we know they haven’t seen a lot. But, we pre-rotated with the next guy… That was our whole thing in the second half, just make them pick the ball up and then rotate. You’re so much better doing that than them exploring. They’re both just so talented. That’s where I thought Jalen’s defense in that stretch on Kyrie was huge for us. We were covering one-on-one, we didn’t have to commit another guy to the ball. I thought that was a turning point for us.”
Kyrie Irving Sounds Off on Mavs Future
As the Mavericks try to work through their rough patch to clinch a postseason berth, the impending free agency of Irving looms in the back of their minds.
The 31-year-old had some encouraging words regarding his future with the team, after the defeat in Philly.
“I think the realistic view is that when I came here, this was going to be a growing process,” Irving said via Sports Illustrated’s Grant Afseth. “This was for the long term, and this was for something that’s bigger than ourselves, and we can’t just be a championship team overnight, especially me coming here. So I think I’ve wrapped my head around that aspect of it. I’m at peace with it. It doesn’t mean that I’m giving up on this season or any of my teammates are, but we know where we realistically are, and our destiny is in some other team’s hands losing games. So we just got to control what we can control and focus on the next few possessions that we have in these next games against some really good teams that want to position themselves for the playoffs. We’re fighting for a spot, so I look forward to the challenge. But again, in the last six minutes of the game, I felt like we could have been better clear, including myself.”
Mavericks’ Kyrie Irving was asked if there’s enough time to build the necessary chemistry in the final few games, given the scramble the standings has caused.
“It’s been a scramble since I’ve been here. So, trying to fill in roles that kind of fill in from other people. And I…