Mavs get their pulse back on Doncic’s first win with Irving

Kyrie Irving’s debut with the Dallas Mavericks jersey had been a beautiful revolution for the team at first. Those victories in the houses of Clippers and Kings excited. But he stayed at that to go on to leave a distaste in the mouths of the team’s fans. The union between Doncic and the former Nets was proving inoperative and the results showed a worrying chain of three defeats before the All-Star break. I’m sure they talked about it at the Salt Lake City event, which almost served more for this kind of camaraderie than providing a spectacle for the spectators. The first contact with reality after that minimal relaxation occurred with the Spurs, one of the Texan duels, who in the only confrontation he had had with Jason Kidd’s men had made them sweat a lot on New Year’s Eve .

142-116 This match was settled at the American Airlines Center. A bit of joy to hold on to this NBA of almost daily seismic movements in which they must be the ones who, from now on, press the button on the mixer. Doncic, with 28 and 8/16, and Irving, with 23 and 8/13, did not have the necessary opposition in front of them. And the two knew how to involve others in the facets in which they make the group great. Hardaway, at 6/11, and Bullock, at 4/6, kept up a good pace hitting the minimum 3-point shots required of them, Holiday (15) bulking up the rotation, Green (11) buffering. ..

It’s just the first win for the Western Conference’s hot new couple. That is how they have to earn the distinction, adding for the Mavs. A good job for the collective and with an impeccable rhythm in the match so as not to suffer at the end. The Spurs, for their part, cannot show a worse face. Gregg Popovich is living a franchise record for consecutive losses The one that he raised so high, the account is now fifteen, and he is entering a moment of the season in which he will consider reserving players so as not to fight excessively in the games. Jeremy Sochan and Tre Jones were no longer in Dallas this Thursday and without them it is difficult to fight for the victory at home of one of the favorites of their part of the draw, who is only sixth and hopes to improve his position thanks to that notorious signing for help Luka Doncic.

Verticality is what they were looking for with Kyrie Irving in attack and that is what they have. The levers have been activated, now that it is so fashionable to use that terminology. The spaces that the American point guard opens, whether the ball is in his hands or in Doncic’s, are worth emphasizing. While it is true that the Spurs are not a level test to gauge how successful an offensive strategy is, it can be said that the Mavs are better that way. Those provoked shots for Bullock and Hardaway, since Davis Bertans cannot be included because he was out again, become an incentive. Valuable positions for players who must shoot (it doesn’t put it in their contract but it’s an unwritten law) and put (they are also one of those who have level streaks for their first shots). A good offensive game was deployed and a 56% success rate was reached with 22 triples on the local side. What he lacked is dryness. Not because the start of the match was delayed for almost half an hour because the track slipped too much, no, but to avoid bad streaks like the one in the second quarter- Dallas received 37 points- which don’t matter today but tomorrow and with another opponent they could be a problem. In short, a day to gain confidence if you are a fan of the Mavericks.