Fans of the Mavs, get in. We’re railing on coach Jason Kidd before of the Mavericks’ second game in three days against the New Orleans Pelicans at the American Airlines Center.
As you are aware, this is the result. You also witnessed him say that. You were alarmed by the Mavericks’ complete collapse, losing 118-108 to the Pelicans, who had essentially punted the game by sitting Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, CJ McCollum, and Trey Murphy III due to “injuries” on the second night of a back-to-back set. You kept an eye on Saturday’s postgame press conferences, where Mavericks coach Jason Kidd’s slack jaw was uttered.
Answering a broad query regarding the volatile character of the previous several games, Kidd concluded by highlighting a stark reality regarding Saturday’s match:
Kidd remarked, “We just couldn’t compete.” “And tonight, our physicality was lacking.”
And why did that occur? It was a logical follow-up for a journalist who was currently speaking with the team’s manager, the coach, you know. A straightforward “why” was the natural follow-up question to Kidd’s already resigned, sadistic answer, as everyone in the room understood.
However, Kidd had the audacity to immediately follow that treasure with this well-known little chestnut. If coaching is Kidd’s job at all, then it seems to be a refrain he sings when it’s become painfully clear to all in the room that he has no real answers and bears no real responsibility for leading this team.
Thus, why? Why was this particular evening’s physicality just lacking? Was the physicality in your other jacket that you left behind? Did the team’s physicality be eaten by the dog?
No, it wasn’t any of those things, but please be understanding with Jason as he continues to search for even the slightest response to the query that everyone can see coming a long way.
“You must inquire with them. Kidd withdrew into his shell and complained, “I’m just the coach. Tired bodies,” before trotting out the next tired phrase. Guys are playing big minutes for us. We’re not big. It takes place. We must take what we can from it and continue on.
It will always be startling to witness a man who identifies as the “head coach” completely refuse to accept responsibility. Every time he casually dismisses the idea of accountability during a news conference, it makes me a little more crazy. You’re taught for years that when it comes to head coaches, “the buck stops here.” Never before have I seen a coach so completely reject the idea that “the buck stops here,” as much as Kidd does. It is a cruel and bizarre joke that this man is still one of the thirty head coaches working for the best basketball league in the world.
The “Shaq-Kobe beef” is now merely a flat cultural reference point and somewhat of a meme. How to Make a Basket: Shaq vs. Kobe aims to go beyond that and explore the reasons and methods behind the renowned teammates’ discord as well as how they managed to become so great despite it. The separation and its repercussions are covered in this third and last section. Even with an ongoing scandal and a recent Finals appearance, Kobe made it clear that he wanted the Lakers all to himself in 2004. What transpired during that last season and the separation, and how did Shaq and Kobe manage to reconcile in the decades that followed?
However, he was correct in one regard. When the Mavs (23-17) and Pels (24-16) play their final game of the season on Monday afternoon in a Martin Luther King Jr. Day featured game, Kidd’s team must be prepared to rebound soon because they’ll probably face a stronger club. As faith in this team’s “fearless leader” wanes, Mavs fans can place a small amount of confidence in these three things ahead of this sneakily important game.
Keeping up greater firepower
In their last two meetings, the Mavericks have unable to contain freshman point guard Jordan Hawkins of Connecticut. In those two Pelicans victories, he has scorched the Mavs for 59 points in total, including a career- and season-high 34 points on Saturday. In his last two games versus Dallas, he has combined for 11-of-24 shooting from long range. On Saturday, he shot 6-of-12 from three point range.
You better buckle up, Mavs supporters, because we can’t say “rest” and the Dallas defense will probably have to deal with one or possibly all four of the Pelicans who missed Saturday’s game due to “injuries.” We might be in for a shootout this time around, depending on how much more firepower the Mavs can add to their active roster.
Due to injuries, Luka Dončić, Dereck Lively II, and Dante Exum were unable to attend the game on Saturday. However, Lively and Dončić were considered “questionable” prior to the game, so there is a chance they will be able to attend on Monday. For Exum, who has missed the Mavs’ last five games due to a heel contusion, the situation is more unclear.
Irving remains a dominant canine.
If Kyrie Irving’s January stat line raised any doubts about his standing as the NBA’s top predator, it would be worth mentioning. Irving is averaging 30.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, and more than five assists in his seven games since returning from his heel injury. His first game back was a 14-point disaster against the Jazz on New Year’s Day. Irving has gone off for a line north of 35/7/7 in the last three games while Dončić has been sidelined due to injury.
His pull-up jumper is as dangerous as ever. He still has the natural ability to move around four defenders and twist his body to get to the rack. He appears to have an innate sense of when to release Dončić and when to carry the scoring load alone. The Mavs don’t feel as limited offensively when he’s the first player on the court as many teams do when their initial offensive option isn’t available.
Covertly important
In general, NBA fans are less interested in division standings than supporters of other professional sports because they don’t hold as much significance. However, a victory on Monday would give the Mavericks a 2-2 season record against the Pelicans. That might matter when it comes to playoff seeding, as the Mavs and the Pels are now leading the Southwest Division of the Western Conference.
In addition to potentially offering some solace in playoff tiebreaker situations, a 2-2 draw in the season series with the Pelicans would also offer more proof that Dallas can compete with elite NBA teams and not just crush them. It can also occasionally be upset by inferior teams.
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