The Dallas Mavericks sent a clear message for their strategy this season after they traded away Kristaps Porzingis at the NBA trade deadline. They're giving the keys exclusively to Luka Doncic and he's taking them as far as they can possibly go.

Mavs head coach Jason Kidd was vocal on Luka Doncic during the All-Star break on his expectations for his superstar for the second half of the season.

Via Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com:

“Luka’s that type of player that can carry the load for not just four games but for most of the season,” the Mavs coach said. “And you saw that here before the break. He’s playing at a very high level. And not just the points, but being able to find guys and set the table for other guys on the floor.

“He’s playing not just at an All-Star, but an MVP level right now and that’s what we need going into the second half.”

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Though Kidd was particular about Luka Doncic being more than just a four-game player, his last four games before the All-Star break were particularly impressive. He averaged 41.5 points per game in that span and has averaged an astounding 36 points per game in the nine games since Kristaps Porzingis last played for the Mavs back on January 29.

That's the level of play Dallas is going to need from their franchise player if they truly want to make noise this season. The move to ship away Kristaps Porzingis was mainly to double down on the rest of the supporting cast.

With KP off the books, the Mavs were able to lock up Dorian Finney-Smith to a four-year deal and look poised to do the same for breakout guard Jalen Brunson in the offseason.

The Mavs have put all their chips in on Luka Doncic. Now it's time to see how much weight he can carry on his broad shoulders.