The Dallas Mavericks are trying to move on from their seismic decision to move on from 25-year-old Luka Doncic two weeks ago. The franchise has stuck to its guns about this being a basketball-related decision, questioning Doncic’s work ethic, style of play, durability, and personal habits publicly after sending him to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The fan outrage against this move has been tremendous, but it seems the franchise is satisfied with this move. Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd is tiptoeing around mentioning Luka in interviews, as indicated by a recent post-game quote where he went out of his way to not name-drop Luka.
“(Kyrie) is gonna get more shots, Klay will get more shots, everybody will get more shots just because the player that we traded. He was involved in everything.”
“Everybody will get more shots just because of the player that we traded, he was involved in everything.”
Why can’t he say his name? Weird for a guy who’s coached him for 4 years. 😂pic.twitter.com/Y3YANeJ4jc
— Showtime Luka (@showtimeluka) February 14, 2025
Referring to Doncic as ‘the player we traded’ and not the central hub of the Mavericks’ offensive game plan for Kidd’s entire tenure as the franchise’s head coach was odd.
While obviously the Mavericks worked hard on building a non-Luka offensive identity, particularly this season, not even mentioning his name or acknowledging the offensive burden he carried for the franchise was odd.
Fans also believe there’s an implication that this quote was a subtle shot at Doncic’s helio-centric style of play and being one of the league leaders in usage rate. However, I think Kidd is just illustrating that everyone needs to step up to replace Doncic’s production for the franchise.
Even after making the Doncic trade and suffering widespread injuries, the team has won four of its last five games, with their only loss coming in OT to the Sacramento Kings. Kidd’s non-Luka offense has been working, but it might not be enough for the team as they’re currently constructed this season.
An Unsustainable Offensive Load On Kyrie Irving
Throughout his entire career, even in his prime, Kyrie Irving thrived as the co-star of a generation-defining superstar. It seemed he had found a role that he could fulfill for years as Doncic’s backcourt partner in Dallas, but he’s now thrust into being the team’s leader on and off the court.
Irving is a 33-year-old guard who’s playing through injuries and hasn’t carried the load of a No. 1 option in years. Even Kidd was asked about Kyrie’s workload before his vague comment about Luka.
“For Kai, we joke about the 42 and zero last night. It wasn’t that he wasn’t looking to pass, it’s that those passes come out of a double-team. That leads to Klay or someone else benefitting from getting a wide-open three or an open layup. The hockey assist isn’t part of the NBA statline but it should be. He led the scoring by getting calls in the double-team.”
Irving is averaging 24.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.8 assists this season. He’s averaged 41.4 minutes over the last five games. He’s had to carry this load due to the widespread injuries on the franchise, including the sidelining of the likely No. 1 option of this team – Anthony Davis.
Even when Davis returns in four weeks, Irving will be the team’s primary perimeter creator. Unless Dante Exum stays healthy and takes a leap or Max Christie shows off skills nobody thought he had, Irving won’t get a chance to rest. It’s hard to imagine them winning a title like this, but the extra shots for everyone should be great.
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