OKLAHOMA CITY — The Dallas Mavericks are preparing for a crucial Game 2 in the Western Conference Semifinal series against the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Mavericks, who suffered a disappointing 117-95 loss in Game 1, are eager to bounce back by the evening of the series.
In Game 1, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 29 points, and the Thunder shot 45.7% from deep, made 16 3-pointers, grabbed 16 offensive rebounds, and had just eight comebacks. Oklahoma City had an all-around performance, with Chet Holmgren (19 points) and Jaylen Williams (18 points) supporting Alexander with a combined 37 points.
“We've got to get better defensively,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. “We didn't have very good balance…We have to be able to minimize those breakdowns.”
The Mavericks struggled to make their signature shots, shooting just 34.1% in the second half. Luguentz Dort's relentless defense against Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving was a big factor. Still, the team admits it needs to create more scoring opportunities by setting better screens and using creativity.
“He looked good in three games,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said of Doncic. “We had to help him. We had to separate Dort a little bit better.” . “We had some offensive fouls while setting screens. We'll see if we can improve on that area.”
Doncic had 19 points, nine assists and six rebounds in Game 1, but shot 6-19 from the floor and 1-8 from the perimeter. He is averaging 28.3 points, 9.4 assists and 8.4 rebounds this postseason while shooting 39.5 percent from the floor and 22.7 percent from the perimeter. He continues to struggle shooting while enduring a sprain in his right knee. He doesn't care about the results. Rather, he is focused on putting in a strong performance heading into the second leg.
“Who cares? We lost,” Doncic said. “I have to move on to the next team. I have to be better. I have to be better. I have to focus. They're a great team, a great defensive team, so it's not going to be easy. .”
Getting into the restricted area has been an issue throughout the postseason, as the Clippers and Thunder pre-rotate weakside shooters to fill the paint. To make matters worse, Maxi Kleber, sidelined with a shoulder injury, is not an option to use as a stretch five to space the floor.
“We need to keep attacking and keep playing downhill,” Irving said. “They make a lot of reach and a lot of little pushes. Their defensive pressure is going to stay the same, so we just have to adjust.”
Irving emphasized the need for the Mavericks to solve the full-court defensive pressure that Dort provides, but also emphasized how the Thunder will address far more than the individual pressure that Dort provides on offense. But Oklahoma City can often pre-rotate weaker shooters, force X-outs to tie the game when they need to compete, or mix blitzes with superstars while keeping shorter defenders waiting in restricted areas. So I took a calculated risk.
“Lou has been a great defender since he came into this league. He should be admired and respected,” Irving said. “I think it creates a lot of problems during the game when he keeps putting pressure on the ball handler from 94 feet up. That's something we have to realize, but he's not the only good defender. I don't know if it's because of that.''I think the only thing that's great about him is him personally, it's the team game that they play, and he does a great job as a leader for that team. ”
Given the connectivity of Oklahoma City's defense, Irving emphasized the need to continue attacking in the paint and play with both feet. The Mavericks will need to adapt to the Thunder's physicality to reduce turnovers and make their downhill offense more successful.
“For me and my teammates, we just have to keep attacking him and keep playing downhill in a two-footed way,” Irving said. “They do a lot of reaching, a lot of little pushes and stuff. We just have to adapt to the teams we play.”
Doncic echoed Irving's sentiments, stressing the need for effort and shooting. “We just have to try for 48 minutes,” he said.
Irving was held to 20 points in Game 1, shooting 7-14 from the floor, 3-4 from deep and 3-3 on free throws, but had four turnovers in the first quarter. His goal was to calm his teammates down, but the Thunder made it difficult to attack the gaps by utilizing Holmgren's defensive versatility as a big size. He entered halftime with six points, but he continued to ask questions about the possibility that he needed to attack sooner rather than wait for the game to settle into its flow.
“We had too many turnovers tonight, especially in the first quarter. We just tried to calm our team down,” Irving said.
The Mavericks also struggled on the glass, losing 52-39 to the Thunder. Josh Green acknowledged the need for improvement in this area. Holmgren is obviously a player who will box out, but Oklahoma City's perimeter players actively shatter the glass, so that also needs to be taken into consideration.
“They shouldn't get that many offensive rebounds,” Green said. “We have to box out and make sure we hit them first. They have one big man (in Holmgren), but they have a lot of troublesome guards. So we have to make sure they We need to be able to eliminate them.”
Despite the struggles, the Mavericks are confident in their ability to adjust and take the lead in Game 2. They've been in this situation before, losing Game 1 of all five playoff series under Kidd. In the last four, he has won twice in Game 2 and he has won three times en route to winning the series.
“We're on the road and we lost the first game. We have to learn from that,” Kidd said. “We have to be better in the second game.”
In particular, the Mavericks must find a way to make Doncic look better after struggling in Game 1. Dort continues to be physical with Doncic to prevent him from comfortably getting to the spots he wants to attack, but that has proven difficult while playing through injuries.
“We need to do better production for him,” Kidd said. “He's a great player, but we need to do a better job of getting him open looks.”
Another adjustment the Mavericks will have to make in Game 2 is catching the ball in the pocket on short rolls because the Thunder not only want to blitz Doncic and Irving, but they also work better with teams. Sometimes it's about making the rim roller aggressive. Low defenders rotate from the weak side to protect the restricted area.
“I think both D-Live and Gaff were holding back a lot,” Doncic said. “We talked about playing two-legged and all we have to do is dunk. If Chet is going to go up there, there's going to be a little down, and they both need to go dunk.”
Lively admitted he needs to slow down and use better judgment when playing from short roles. He felt his pace quicken at times. He totaled two points and four rebounds, but had two turnovers, shot just 1-3 from the floor and lacked his typical aggressiveness in the paint.
“I've been slower in fulfilling my role, slower in making decisions, so I'm making the right decisions,” Lively said. “There were times when we ran up speed and had some turnovers and didn't make the right plays, but that comes with repetition. That's the way they play defense. We just have to learn from the deck. “”
Gafford acknowledged the need to finish at a higher rate with Roll. He found himself numerous times drawing smaller defenders, doing Roman rotations, or standing vertically to apply pressure in the paint, before failing to finish as a short roller. He still had an impact on the game, posting 16 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks, but shot 5-12 from the floor but 6-8 from the free throw line.
“We had to fix them at the end of the day and put the ball in the hole,” Gafford said. Normally people would think, “Wow, someone is still alive today.'' But just around the basket, that wasn't the case for me. I need to get better in that area. … The left and right shots looked great, they just didn't fall. ”
The Mavericks understand the need to get acclimated to the game faster and overcome the hot shooting spree the Thunder have displayed, especially if they move on from Josh Giddy and have shooters at all five spots. Giving up fewer long rebounds and turnovers will help control the game, but either way, the pressure on Oklahoma City's defense won't let up. Dallas outscored the Thunder by seven points in the 17 minutes Guidi was on the court, but won by 29 points in the final 31 minutes Guidi didn't play.
When the Thunder opted for options like Isiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins in place of Guidi, it proved difficult for the Mavericks to contain the perimeter, which caused Gilgeous-Alexander to slow down. It also became. Dallas' priorities will be on offense, including turnovers and long misses, to help Oklahoma City get clean looks and eliminate transition and early offensive opportunities to embark on a barrage of 3-point shots. It's about reducing our mistakes.
“The pressure they were putting on was definitely due to their excitement, but in Game 2 we needed to settle down a lot quicker and if we can't withstand the barrage of 3-pointers they put out from long range. I don't think so.'' We ended up hitting some 3s near the free throw line and some turnovers,'' Irving said. “There are some things we need to reflect on, but the pressure from our defense doesn't stop, so we just have to make adjustments.''
The Mavericks must also remain focused and calm in the face of adversity. In Game 1, the Thunder struggled to keep his composure, committing 15 turnovers and allowing the Thunder 22 points from those mistakes.
“We need to be better with the ball,” Kidd said. “We can't give them an easy chance.”
Despite the challenges they face, the Mavericks are confident in their ability to bounce back and win Game 2. They have shown resilience and determination throughout the season and are keen to prove it once again.
“We're a good team,” Kidd said. “We've been in tough situations before, but we've always come out on top. We just have to stay focused and play to our strengths.”
The Mavericks hope to do just that in Game 2 as they look to even the series and gain momentum heading into Game 3. With the season at stake, they are ready to put in the effort and come out on top.
“We're not going to give up,” Doncic said. “We're going to keep fighting and come out on top.”
Irving reiterated the importance of learning from his performance in Game 1, especially strengthening his performance in coverage. However, it is also important to approach the game with the right attitude.
“I think that's the most important thing. Game 1 is over. We didn't play as well as we wanted to,” Irving said. “We failed in many interviews and were not able to approach the event with the attitude necessary to receive this W award.”
read more: Lakers eye Mavericks assistant coach
read more: The Mavericks have yet to win a game under Jason Kidd, but is that a concern?
read more: Doncic's knee sprain is inevitable after Mavs dropped Game 1 against Thunder
