Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd wants Luka Doncic and his players to know that their playoffs series against the Phoenix Suns will be different to the one they had against the Utah Jazz. For one, the Arizona-based franchise is a way better and deeper franchise. Second, unlike the first round, they are the underdogs this time around.

With that said, Kidd admits the Mavs have to face that reality that no one–aside from their fan base perhaps–will believe in them to beat the Suns.

“No one is going to favor us or give us a chance in this series. We just got to take one possession at a time, continue to have fun and execute and play hard and see what happens,” Kidd said of Dallas' chances against Phoenix, per Dwain Price of Mavs.com.

Jason Kidd isn't lying, though. While he definitely believes they can hold their ground against the West's top seeds, it will be basically them against the world.

Not to mention that the Mavs have failed to win against the Suns in their past nine meetings. This 2021-22 season alone, they lost all their three matches despite having the lead entering in the fourth quarter in those instances.

Facing off against the Suns will be the Mavs' biggest challenge yet, and they have to step up as a team to overcome one of the most well-rounded and well-coached rosters in the NBA.