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The Dallas Mavericks‘ February 26 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers was an ugly one. Dallas led by as many as 27 points in the first half, before a monumental collapse saw the Lakers walk away with the win. Sunday’s defeat marked the Mavs’ fourth in their last five games.
Head coach Jason Kidd was far from thrilled with his team’s performance. After the brutal loss, Kidd spoke with reporters, placing the blame on his players and calling for the team to be more mature.
“I’m not the savior here. I’m not playing. I’m watching, just like you guys,” he told the media. “As a team, we’ve got to mature. We’ve got a lot of new bodies coming back and we have to grow up if we want to win a championship. There’s no young team that’s ever won a championship, mentally or physically… For two and a half quarters we’re playing a high level on both ends, offensively and defensively. But, what the Lakers just showed us is that it’s not a race, it’s not the rabbit that wins, it’s the turtle. They worked the game. That’s what we have to get to, we have to get better at working the game, and we will.”
Justin Holiday Cites Jason Kidd as Factor in Decision to Join Mavs
It’ll be interesting to see how Kidd’s players respond to the public bashing that was Sunday’s post game press conference. In the past, players have seemed to enjoy playing for him. Justin Holiday even cited Kidd as one of the reasons he decided to join the Mavs.
Holiday spoke with the media after making his debut with Dallas on Thursday night.
“It’s dope to play for him… he gets it, he understands it, he’s straightforward, honest, communicates, that’s how I like it. Just be real with me and we’re gonna be good.”
When asked about his coach’s expectations of him since joining the team, the 33-year-old said Kidd just told him to go out there and play the way he knows how to.
“Really just to go out there and just play. Just to be me,” Holiday told reporters after the win over the San Antonio Spurs. “You know, when anyone just tells you to be you, that’s an easy job to do. Again, he understands the game so he knows that things aren’t gonna be perfect, but he understands that I play the game hard. So, he’s just like go out there an play hard. You know, I’m a vet, I’ve played long enough, I know how to do any and everything. He’s not worried about the mistakes that might happen here and there, he knows I’m going to get it.”
Jason Kidd Shines Light on Kyrie Irving After Mavs Top Spurs
Holiday’s viewpoint of Kidd is most certainly fair. Dallas’ head coach isn’t always ripping his team in post game interviews. He actually had some great things to say about Kyrie Irving after Thursday’s win.
“He’s a student of the game. He’s fundamentally sound, understands how to use the pivot, understands how to create space without the dribble, and he’s the best dribbler in the league,” Kidd said via Grant Afseth. “So, to be able to create space [with triple-threat] in small spaces, he’s unstoppable.”
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