The Dallas Mavericks earned a thrilling 125-120 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday. Kyrie Irving and Tim Hardaway Jr. led the charge with 83 combined points. Dallas is looking to maintain their momentum heading into their upcoming west coast road trip, as the Mavericks will battle the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors. Irving revealed how the Mavs can continue to perform well on the road trip following Monday's win against the Pelicans.
“By not getting too ahead of ourselves and being satisfied with this win against the New Orleans Pelicans,” Irving said. “I feel like every time we take our foot off the gas pedal… next game we drop a dud. I don't want that happening. Even if that does happen in the next game, I don't want to say I planned it.
“It's just, I want to find that consistency. I know my teammates, coaching staff, our management want to find that consistency as well. That's what the healthy challenge is everyday is waking up, preparing as best you can and going out there and trying to play your best game and living with the results.”
Kyrie Irving is leading Mavericks
Irving is performing at an elite level. He's scored at least 30 points in five consecutive games, and two of those contests resulted in 40-plus point performances for Irving. With Luka Doncic currently dealing with an injury, it is clear that Irving is leading the Mavericks.
He had help on Monday from Tim Hardaway Jr. and Dereck Lively, however. Irving led all scorers with 42 points and added seven rebounds and seven assists. Hardaway added 41 points, while Lively was impressive on the boards and recorded 12 rebounds.
It was only the second time in Mavericks history that two players both recorded 40-plus point performances. The last time it happened for Dallas came during the 2022-23 season when Luka Doncic scored 42 and Kyrie Irving scored 40 against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Irving was also asked about Hardaway's play in recent action.
“He’s having an incredible stretch right now,” Irving said. “He is making a lot of right reads. He is taking some tough shots for sure. I think he is right in his wheelhouse of allowing the work to translate into success on the court. You are watching him make a lot of opportunities for himself and be highly efficient at it. I’m happy for him.”
Mavs' 2023-24 season
Dallas is now 24-17. Despite dealing with injury uncertainty, they have performed well. Irving gave his evaluation of the Mavs' season following Monday's victory.
“In terms of a personal evaluation, I’m not too deep into it. It is the early portion of the season. We aren’t even at the All-Star break yet. You never know… things could change over the next few weeks or the next few months.”
Kyrie Irving made it clear he wasn't talking about potential trades. Rather, he was referring to possible lineup variations and different strategies.
One area where Irving has also clearly found success is as a leader. Irving's teammates respect him, and as a veteran who has won an NBA championship, Irving is the perfect co-star for a young phenom like Luka Doncic.
The Mavericks may be counted out by some people around the NBA world. But this team features the potential to shock the Western Conference and make a legitimate championship run. Staying healthy will obviously be important, as will finding consistency like Irving said.
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