The Dallas Mavericks are 1-3 in the Kyrie Irving era, and head coach Jason Kidd wants the world to know that Luka Doncic isn’t blameless in the recent struggles.
Speaking to the media after the Mavericks’ blew a 27-point lead to the Lakers this week, head coach Jason Kidd used words like ‘immaturity’ as he demanded his team to ‘grow up’ both emotionally and as basketball players on the court.
“I’m not the savior here. I’m not playing. I’m watching, just like you guys. As a team, we’ve got to mature,” said Kidd. “We’ve got to grow up.”
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, those comments were directly aimed at franchise superstar Luka Doncic, who continues to let his emotions and frustration become a source of distraction for his team.
“He’s calling out Luka Doncic,” said Windhorst on ESPN’s ‘Get Up!’ Wednesday morning. “When he says they’re immature and have to grow up, Luka is the only one of five starters in his 20s. He was talking about Luka. Specifically, I think he was talking about how Luka got distracted in this game, complaining to the officials as the Lakers were making this big comeback. In the second and third quarters combined, Jason Kidd called one timeout. I think because he kind of wanted the Mavericks to try and figure it out on their own.”
Luka, like all Mavericks fans, was initially excited to play alongside Kyrie and there is still a sense of wonder about what they can be as a duo. But things haven’t been pretty in Dallas since their team-up, and some are even wondering if the Kyrie Irving experiment will last beyond this season.
Will Kyrie Irving Stay In Dallas?
The Mavericks gave up a pretty significant package to land Kyrie Irving, but it may end up just being a one-year rental. As a free agent this summer, Irving is set to hit the open market, and it’s no secret he holds a desire to play for the Lakers.
Over these next few weeks and months, Dallas will be working overtime to help turn things around and ensure that Kyrie sees the Mavericks as a long-term option for his NBA career.
If not, it could leave the Mavericks in a dangerous place with a superstar and practically nothing surrounding him on the roster.
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