The Dallas Mavericks took a huge step towards contention when they traded for Kyrie Irving and gave Luka Doncic the superstar co-star everyone said he needed.
Even though there are long-term questions about the partnership, the on-court fit should be magnificent. Despite that, the Mavericks have lost 2 close games to begin the partnership of their new backcourt.
The losses have had encouraging moments, like the Mavericks managing to take a higher-seeded Kings team to OT on the second night of a back-to-back and erasing a 26-point deficit in a 3-point loss to the Wolves. Kyrie Irving has only positive things to say about being on the Mavericks despite the losses.
Mavericks' Kyrie Irving on his synergy with Luka Doncic after two games:
"It feels great. We just have to get more timely stops and take care of a few possessions. That can go either way. We're playing in the Western Conference, and I am learning that there's a lot of… pic.twitter.com/87ZiNwxdPP
— Grant Afseth (@GrantAfseth) February 15, 2023
“It feels great. We just have to get more timely stops and take care of a few possessions. That can go either way. We’re playing in the Western Conference, and I am learning that there’s a lot of physicality [and] a lot of players that go get buckets. But towards the end of the game, it is just about will and body positioning and doing the little things to get you a win. Offensive rebounds down the stretch, too. Right now, I am figuring out his pace, especially in the first quarter. Coming out of halftime, figuring out what pace we’re going to play at. When we’re up and running and gunning a little bit and switching on the perimeter, doing things that keep the game going, not taking the ball out of the rim. Forcing them to miss shots and turn the ball over, we’re locked into the details of our adjustments. I feel like we play extremely well when we’re doing that. That pace is great for us. But obviously, we can’t wait until the fourth quarter to get it going like that. That’s on me. We will figure it out a little earlier and be aggressive and just be myself.”
Irving had only 10 points against the Wolves through the first 3 quarters but had a 26-point explosion in the fourth to lead the Mavericks back into the game. Even against the Kings, Irving was relatively passive until called upon.
Will Kyrie Irving And Luka Doncic Figure It Out?
The reason the Mavericks lost these games is due to their porous defense giving up 257 points over these 2 games. Their defense is looking like one of the worst in the league, with their best wing defender Dorian Finney-Smith being traded to acquire Irving.
Irving and Luka Doncic both are adjusting to sharing the ball in end-game situations, with both players seemingly deferring too much through their first 2 games. The team will hope to get a win against the one-seed Denver Nuggets before Irving and Doncic go to play in the 2023 NBA All-Star Game in Utah.
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