The Dallas Mavericks defeated the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday and enter the All-Star break on a six-game winning streak.
The team is in seventh place in the Western Conference, one game behind fifth-place Phoenix and New Orleans, and their improved play continues as players return from injury and the second half of the season begins next week. It is expected that.
“I think we're coming together,” head coach Jason Kidd told the media after Thursday's win. “We're starting to get healthy. We're not used to being healthy, so it's going to change a little bit. The times aren't going to be as long, so the players have to make that adjustment, but… , our depth should be one of our weapons and also our pace.”
Kidd and the coaching staff emphasized pace throughout the offseason, thanks to the athleticism the team added in rookie center Derek Lively II, veteran guard Dante Exum and forward Josh Green. , guards Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving were missing. And several others throughout the season hindered progress in that department.
Kidd also emphasized that a big part of the pace will come from the Mavericks' defensive end, where they are known to struggle. They added players in the offseason to fix that, adding PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford, two frontcourt players known as good defenders who do the little things right, at the NBA trade deadline. He continued to tinker with the roster.
“I really love how P.J. plays defense for us,” Kidd said. “He's guarding everyone, and he's guarding at a high level. That gives us the depth to play him on the big wing, on the big wing, even on the small wing. …His defense is above par and we need it.”
Lively returned from a broken nose on Wednesday with eight points, five rebounds and one assist, and Kidd told media members after the game that Exum could return to the lineup next week.
While his improved health and recent performance are big signs of what's to come, Dallas knows there are still some issues to work out.
“We're still making some mistakes,” Lively said after the game. “We know that if we wipe out those mistakes and clean up some of the intangibles, we can blow what we've been doing so far out of proportion. And I just have to try.'' He continued. “
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