The Dallas Mavericks got a crucial win in Game 2 against the Oklahoma City Thunder Thursday night, 119-110, as the series is now tied at one victory a piece. Mavericks star Kyrie Irving spoke to the media after the contest and gave his thoughts on what the mindset Dallas should have as they head back home for Game 3 and take control of the series.
Irving had a good game depending on who you ask as while the Mavericks came out of it with a win, he only scored nine points, making only two of eight attempts from the field. However, he did record 11 assists which is a career playoff high for the 32-year old guard as he talked the importance of “everyone getting involved” which leads to “being a champion” according to Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News.
“With everyone getting involved, it's not my time to press,” Irving said. “It's my time to do other things in order to make us successful, it's just part of being a champion, it's continuing to push forward no matter what shots you're getting.”
Irving talks about the resiliency the Mavericks have leading to Game 2 win
If there is one trait that the Mavericks have shown so far this playoffs has been their resilience as in both series against the Thunder and previously in the first round facing the Los Angeles Clippers, they went down 0-1. They would then come back the next game and clearly learn from their mistakes which is significant to do for Irving when it comes to Dallas according to Tim Cato of The Athletic.
“When you fail, it motivates you,” Irving said. “In this case, we had a chance to have 24 hours to think about what we did wrong (in Game 1). We also had 24 hours to think about what we can consistently build upon. … Against a young team like this, they’re not going to stop coming at you. We just got to be ready for whatever they throw at us.”
Same thing goes for superstar Luka Doncic who struggled in Game 1 with 19 points and came back Thursday and scored 29 points, collected 10 rebounds, and recorded seven assists. However, it was others on the team that stepped up like P.J. Washington (7-11 from deep) who also scored 29 as he came to the team via the trade deadline from the Charlotte Hornets, plus players on the bench like Tim Hardaway Jr. who contributed with 19.
“In this case, we can use this word: (The role players) were very selfish about their approach as individuals coming into this game,” Irving said.
Mavericks getting everybody involved in Game 2 win over Oklahoma City
Seeing how the Mavericks got everybody involved could be the key to victory of the series against the Thunder which is obviously easier said than done when facing the No. 1 seed. However, the inexperience of Oklahoma City could provide Dallas with some leverage as they head into tough road tests.
Following up on the inexperience of the Thunder, they have had a relatively easy time in the playoffs thus far where they swept by the New Orleans Pelicans and just suffered their first loss. How they adapt to the defeat would be a clear test to show what separates a good team from a great one. Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd talked about how Irving and Doncic gets them into rhythm, but the game plan in Game 2 could be something they build off of in the future.
“We always look to Kai [Irving] and Luka, and those guys will always get their shots,” Kidd said about how the Mavericks played in Game 1. “We looked at something different (to start Game 2), and it worked. And maybe it’s something to build upon as we go forward with other role players.”
Inexperience of Thunder can help Dallas in series?
Dallas has the edge over Oklahoma City in terms of the experience, especially from players like Irving who has tasted gold before when he won a championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. Adding on to that, he also dealt with major adversity when the Cavs were down 3-1 to the high-powered Golden State Warriors and still managed to win three straight games, albeit they had LeBron James who is by some the greatest player to touch a basketball.
Irving still was a big factor in that win as he's looking to keep up that magic and be an exceptional No. 2 to Doncic who has exceptional qualities of his own. After that Game 1 loss, Irving spoke candidly about the conversations the team would have after the loss last Tuesday.
Mavericks can take control of series as series heads back to Dallas
“We have real honest talks about what the game was like, and we don’t sugarcoat anything,” Irving said when asked about the team’s response to Game 1’s disappointment via The Athletic. “We just address it right after the game and then when we go through film. It’s not about any hard feelings, it’s about us getting better, and when you can have that honesty in the locker room amongst guys who really want to win and do well for each other, (it) goes a long way.”
“I think we were prepared today,” Irving continued. “A little bit more prepared than we were to go into this tough environment tonight, and I think we showed what great class (we have) on both ends of the floor.”
Irving has had a great season in his 14th year in the association as he is averaging 25.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game while shooting 49.7 percent from the field. On the other hand, Doncic has averaged 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game while shooting 48.7 percent from the field which was enough for him to be a finalist for MVP, but the award ultimately went to Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic.
The Mavericks finished the season with 50-32 record which put them fifth in the Western Conference as they face the Thunder who are the aforementioned first seed with a 57-25 record. The series now will move to Dallas as Game 3 will take place on Saturday afternoon as the team looks to get back to the Western Conference Finals which they have not done since the 2021-22 season.
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