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The Dallas Mavericks were defeated by the Sacramento Kings 129-113 Sunday night. It was the second of a back-to-back for Dallas, and the grueling schedule likely played a role in the loss. But the Mavs also dealt with issues in the game that have been problematic all season long. Luka Doncic addressed what went wrong for the Mavericks Sunday after the game.
“I think we just got to get better at our defense,” Doncic told reporters, via Grant Afseth of dallasbasketball.com.
Doncic was later asked about the Mavs' rebounding trouble against the Kings. He responded by revealing another concern Dallas needs to work on, via Afseth as well.
“That's part of the defense and the physicality, so those two things, we have to get way better.”
Mavs' struggles vs. Kings
It's still been a good season for the Mavs. Dallas holds a 9-5 record despite dropping two games in a row. Defense and physicality, as Doncic mentioned, have been questionable at times though.
The Mavs have relied on their impressive offense for most of the season. Dereck Lively has helped on the defensive end of the floor, but when he exits games Dallas is often left searching for answers.
The Kings ultimately scored 58 points in the paint. They shot the ball efficiently from all over the court as well, finishing with a field goal percentage of 53.3 and three-point percentage of 42.5. Sacramento also recorded 14 offensive rebounds and 34 defensive rebounds en route to a total of 48 boards.
The Mavs' struggles on defense led to a brutally honest Jason Kidd admission.
“Until we can understand and be connected on the defensive end, then we’ll be able to make strides but right now our best defense is our offense,” Kidd said, via Landon Thomas of Mavs Fans For Life. “If we aren’t scoring 130, it’s hard to win.”
Dallas has a great offense but scoring 130 points every night is difficult. The Mavs need to find a solution to their defensive woes. This team has championship potential, but addressing their uncertainty will be of the utmost importance.
The Mavs will try to rebound in a road clash with the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday.
