Coming off another clutch letdown in their previous game, the Dallas Mavericks needed to experience a bounce back against a shorthanded Utah Jazz team. They did just that, achieving a 120-116 win on Tuesday.
The Mavs had led by as many as 13 points early in the second quarter, but failed to hold onto that momentum and were tied at halftime. It wasn’t until Kyrie Irving took charge in the fourth quarter that Dallas had created meaningful separation and didn’t lose a lead down the stretch.
Here are three takeaways from the Mavs’ win over the Jazz:
3. Josh Green Still Stuck in Slump
It has become a challenge for Josh Green to make much of an impact offensively in recent performances. He had a run of playing heavy minutes before the NBA All-Star break and producing at a high level, but has been struggling since.
Against the Jazz, Green finished with only seven points on 3-10 shooting from the floor and went 1-5 from 3-point range. He was coming off a scoreless performance against the Phoenix Suns in his prior performance and has’nt reached the double-figure threshold since Feb. 23, when he had 11 points against the San Antonio Spurs.
Some opponents aren’t leaving Green open like they were earlier in the season, even when he’s spacing from the weak-side corner. Others have seemingly figured out the ways he likes to attack. He had thrived as a relief option for his teammates to make spray-out passes to in those instances when the low-man would rotate to help in addition to attacking in transition.
The Mavs need as much impact as they can get from the wings they deploy next to Irving and Doncic. Green presents the only option capable of making dynamic closeout attack, secondary playmaking, and general explovieness that can be harnessed in various half-court actions. Can the Mavs get him back on track?
2. Tim Hardaway Jr’s Hot Shooting Continues
There have been a variety of games this season that likely had the outcome determined by Tim Hardaway Jr. getting hot from 3-point range. Had he not been converting at a high clip against the Jazz, there is a real chance Utah’s short-handed squad could have pulled off an upset. He finished with 24 points while converting seven of nine attempts from 3-point range.
“He’s a shooter. He’s got to take them. He’s getting great looks, his confidence is high and his teammates are looking for him,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. “When you have that going on during a game as a shooter – I haven’t been there before – but just understanding when your teammates are looking for you, you want to deliver. That’s what he’s doing right now.”
After recent games, Hardaway has emphasized that nothing has changed in his approach, but he has highlighted the opportunities he’s received early in the shot clock lately as being instrumental in his play. He gets plenty of these looks by playing alongside Kyrie Irving, who likes to push the pace more than Luka Doncic.
“Nothing has changed. Just the ball has been going in the basket. Taking the looks and stepping into them with confidence,” Hardaway said. “Getting my shots early in the clock. Trying to take advantage of the break. Just trying to find ways early in the clock to be effective.”
With the Mavs lacking much for aggressive sharpshooting, it’s vital that Hardaway takes and makes shots at a high clip. A lot of games in their postseason run last season were swayed by role players’ execution. If he can catch a stride from deep at the right time, it goes a long way for the Mavs. He produced his 15th game this season with at least five makes from 3-point range.
1. Kyrie Irving’s Fourth Quarter Prowess Continues
Throughout his NBA career, Irving has been known as “Mr. Fourth Quarter,” and he continues to show why that’s still the case. He scored 17 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter, and the Mavs made it a point to trust the hot hand down the stretch.
“He was the hot player – he was going. When he wasn’t scoring, he was finding the open guy or he was causing a double team,” Kidd said. “We played through him down the stretch and he delivered; made some big baskets but he made some big free throws, too.”
Irving takes as a responsible for him to be a closer for his team. He felt as though he had underachieved in this respect in some recent games, making it all the more important to elevate his game against the Jazz. He was aggressive when opportunities came his way to make plays with the ball.
“It’s winning time really. I’ve been saying that in my career. That fourth quarter, specifically at my age now, it’s the difference between winning ballgames and losing them,” Irving said. “The last few games have been really close and we haven’t closed out as well as we would have liked. I haven’t closed out as well as I would have liked. Just putting a lot of pressure on myself.”
Irving felt as though the Mavs applied heavy pressure on the Jazz’s defense by beating their traps and making them guard multiple actions in the half-court. With the help of some timely made 3s in the second half, it proved to be the difference in overtaking and maintining the momentum of the game.
“They were trying to get the ball out of me and [Luka Doncic]’s hands. It felt like we did a great job tonight of trying to beat the trap and make their bigs have multiple plays they have to guard,” Irving said. “I think we settled in in the second half where we started trusting the ball movement and the ball ended up finding some people where we hit some timely 3s that we didn’t hit in the first half.
Source: yardbarker.com
