BOSTON-The Dallas Mavericks lost 0-1 in a series twice during their run to the NBA Finals. They have come here six times in seven series with Jason Kidd at the helm.
They know what the “tomorrow” of a match like this will be, a 107-89 crushing against the Boston Celtics in Thursday’s first game, it’s as if. Maybe more than they would like, but they know it.
So Friday will seem familiar to them.
“It’s just about the positives (and) what we can do to build on them,” Kidd said Thursday night. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow.” Understanding the little things, the physical. We need to be better at this.
Most of the Mavericks players said they were ready for Friday’s film session. Already, they are mainly interested in what could be improved.
“I have the impression (the Celtics) don’t need to give us that boost,” rookie center Derek Lively II said. “We all feel it in our souls.”
PJ Washington echoed what Lively said: “The most important thing was strategy (for me). The guys were in the right mental space.
It was this belief that helped Dallas overcome 0-1 deficits against the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round and the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second. This is why the emotional leader of the team, Kyrie Irvingrecalled an unusual feeling of those tomorrows.
“I will say the next day was pretty cool, you know,” said Irving, who struggled with 12 points on 6 of 19 shooting Thursday. “Seeing us still united in practice, continuing to follow our daily routines and rituals, and just supporting each other and holding each other accountable, but in a very healthy way. We’re very honest about what we can continue to do better, and then we’re very honest about how we can help each other be better.
GO FURTHER
Inside the journey where Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving went from colleagues to “brothers”
Dallas doesn’t believe it’s GOOD falling behind in a series, and the Mavericks also don’t feel like their confidence alone will make this series any closer than the drubbing in Game 1. The team will review the adjustments they need to make before Game 2 on Sunday. In fact, these are the ones that started in the middle of the second quarter, and provided that Dallas can take limited optimism from this game.
At 6:36 of the second quarter, Dallas moved to Maxi Kleber as the team’s only center. Kleber is a modern great who changes and shoots, even if his will fluctuates. (He didn’t attempt any deep shots Thursday.) He trusted the perimeter guard much more, even against opposing stars, than the starting center. Daniel Gaffordwho only played 4:36 in the second half.
After Kleber was inserted, the Mavericks began changing almost every play Boston threw at them. The move also provided the team with slightly better spacing. Although rim protection against bigs got Dallas into the Finals, it’s not as viable against a team like 3-point mastery like Boston. From that insertion midway through the second quarter until the Mavericks took out their stars, Boston trailed Dallas by just three points.
It didn’t matter because the Celtics led by 21 points at the time, and it didn’t matter that Dallas cut the lead to eight in the third quarter when it ultimately lost by 18. Boston won at once. corner 3s and lob dunks. Dallas’ offense. After attempting 67 alley-oops in the postseason, Dallas attempted just one in Thursday’s game. The only other game this postseason where Dallas threw a lob was in its Game 1 loss to the Clippers. The only other game where Dallas attempted just four 3-pointers from the corners came against the Minnesota Timberwolves – also in the first game of the series, even though it was a game the team won.
“I think (the Celtics are) the best team in the NBA“, Kidd said. “They’re good for a reason.”
GO FURTHER
Hollinger: If Mavs stars can’t beat Celtics 1-on-1, this series is over
Some teams in these playoffs failed to take away any of the Mavericks’ main weapons. Dallas needs to find ways to unlock one or both of them. While Luka Doncic had a standard game from his point of view, it wasn’t one of his invincible heaters. His third-quarter surge to cut Boston’s lead to single digits was fleeting. What was not standard for him was recording a single assist for only the fifth time in his career. Because Boston challenged Dončić to score, he — and, less frequently, Irving — tried to oblige.
“I don’t necessarily agree that it’s a trap that they want to set for us,” Irving said, referring to the Celtics’ approach in Game 1 of facing the star duo of Dallas to score rather than get their teammates more involved.
There will be a lot more happening in the now familiar “tomorrow” Friday for Dallas. They will experience the same phenomenon after the first match, now among the highest stakes in this sport.
“We’re going to hear the familiar feeling or the colloquialism that a lot of guys haven’t experienced the Finals on our team, and that’s OK,” Irving said. “Experience is the best teacher, and once you get Game 1 or Game 2 out of the way, you start to feel better about the series.”
Nothing about this experience changes Boston hitting Dallas in Game 1. The Mavericks’ offense was too hampered, their defense too steadfast. Dallas needs to improve everything to have a chance — even if that means this might not be a series for players like Gafford.
Unlike many of these players, Dončić has played on the biggest stages. He was there during the Mavericks’ 2022 Conference Finals that twice saw them overcome 0-1 deficits to win previous series.
Asked about the team’s confidence, he was even clearer.
“Do you want me to say we have no trust? » Doncic said. “Of course we do).”
More coverage of Game 1 from Athleticism
(Top photo: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
