The Dallas Mavericks have been imploding since the trade deadline acquisition of Kyrie Irving. The superstar pairing with Luka Doncic has underperformed all expectations and currently sits at the 11th position. They are a game behind the Oklahoma City Thunders, fighting for a spot in the Play-In tournament.
Since Kyrie joined the Mavericks, he has been averaging 26.7 PPG, shooting a respectable 51% from the field, while Luka’s numbers have also been consistently good. However, it’s on the defensive end, wherein lies the problem.
The Mavericks superstars have obvious limitations when it comes to defense. To make matters worse, Dallas had to trade away their best defender in ‘Dorian Finney-Smith’. Their lack of perimeter defense and rim protection has been their Achilles heel. However, Kyrie has not given up and sounded optimistic while talking to reporters.
Kyrie Irving still hopes to make the Play-In Tournament
With the recent string of losses, Dallas has lost the chance to secure a spot in the Playoffs. Their only hope is to fight through the Play-In tournament, and the window is closing soon. With only three games left in the season, the Mavericks team needs to get wins in a hurry.
Kyrie Irving when talking to Dallas Morning News sports reporter – Brad Townsend, sounded optimistic and had a positive outlook. Here is what he said:
“We’ve just been losing tough ones, emotionally draining, but at the same time we’re professionals. So I think the fun part of it is we still have a glimmer of hope, a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel of where we can still sneak in. But at the same time, I’m at peace with just our effort, with spurts throughout the games. We’ve just got to be able to finish better as a team.”
There is no denying the offensive firepower of Doncic and Irving. Even in the losses, their scoring numbers are as expected, but the inability to get enough stops to close the games has hurt them.
Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic pairing
Post All-Star break, Dallas ranks 23rd of all teams in Defensive Rating and has won only 46% of their games. The duo has shared the court in 15 games with an astonishing losing record of 4-11. There seems to be no chemistry in the team when they play together.
The team is running out of time to figure out a lineup that can help them win games. Jason Kidd must be under immense pressure, as owner Mark Cuban would be expecting results after giving away so many assets to get Kyrie Irving. Are the Mavericks capable of making the Playoffs, what do you think?
