Isaiah Thomas gets a call from Mavericks GM for a 10-day contract just after the day he landed back from LA, he said hell yeah, and played a game the same night.
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After his release by the Lakers following a 10-day contract, Isaiah Thomas took a flight back to his home in Seattle. The former Celtics point guard started his daily choirs when he got a call from the Mavericks GM offering another hardship deal.
The veteran guard is in his 11th season and has career averages of 18 points and 4.9 assists in 532 games with eight teams. He started his career in Sacramento, where he joined the Mavericks Wednesday night to take on the Kings.
With Luka Doncic already out with an injury and then the NBA’s Health and Safety protocols, after Brandon Knight’s entry into the COVID-19 protocols. The Mavericks were in need of a guard on short notice to be game-ready.
“Those Seattle guys can hoop, no matter where it’s at,” Mavericks head coach, Jason Kidd, said. “If he’s asked to play at the highest level, he’ll get on a plane and fly anywhere to play. That’s how much he loves the game. He wants to get back in the league, so this is a great opportunity for him.”
“He believes he belongs in this league. And so the Mavs are going to give him that opportunity to showcase what he can do. And that’s going to start tonight. He won’t have time to (get acclimated). He’s going to be thrown right in there. And we believe he can help us,” the coach said before Wednesday’s game.
Mavericks needed Isaiah Thomas to play as soon as he arrived
As Jason Kidd said, Mavericks needed IT to fill in the very day he arrived in Sacramento. And the veteran point guard, being a thorough professional accepted the challenge.
“I was getting some groceries, and Nico (Harrison, the Mavericks’ general manager) had called me,” Thoms said. “The first thing he asked me was, ‘you think you can play tonight?’”
Isaiah Thomas was out grocery shopping in Seattle when Mavs GM Nico Harrison called him today about signing a 10-day contract. He asked me, ‘You think you can play tonight.? I said, ‘Hell yeah I can play tonight.’ ” So Thomas hopped on a plane and flew to Sacramento.
— Dwain Price (@DwainPrice) December 30, 2021
“I was like, hell yeah I can play tonight. I was in Seattle, I just got home from LA (Tuesday). It’s been a lot, but I’m built for this. I’m ready for it. I’m thankful for the opportunity. And it was a no-brainer when he asked.”
Indeed, he is built for it. The veteran guard scored 6 points and dished 4 assists in just over 13 minutes. He’d be looking for more playing time by the time Mavs players are out.
Then again, the legend hustler that is Isaiah Thomas will move on to his next journey, until he finds him a team that sees a longer contract-worthy player in IT.
