MILWAUKEE – Forward Klay Thompson didn’t mince words when asked how tough was it to try and defeat the Milwaukee Bucks on
Wednesday night when the Dallas Mavericks had a whopping nine players on the injury list.
“We’re human,” Thompson said after the 137-107 loss to the Bucks at Fiserv Forum. “It’s very hard. You have to find joy of playing the game and playing for one another. Your character is built during the toughest times.
“It’s easy to be high and mighty when you’re winning games and we’re feeling great. But the true test of your character is when things don’t go your way and you still show up and you still play hard and you’re still with your teammates, and I thought we did a good job of that tonight.”
Thompson is the lone player in the Mavs’ regular starting lineup who was healthy enough to play Wednesday. The Mavs, in fact, only dressed the NBA minimum of eight players for the game against the Bucks, so it wasn’t a fair fight in every sense of the word.
Among the injured players the Mavs were missing: Kyrie Irving (torn left ACL), Anthony Davis (adductor strain), Dereck Lively II (right ankle stress fracture), PJ Washington (right ankle sprain), Daniel Gafford (right knee sprain), Dante Exum (right foot contusion), Jaden Hardy (right ankle sprain), Caleb Martin (right hip strain) and Kai Jones (left quad strain).
No wonder the Bucks were able to jump out to a 43-30 lead after the first quarter, extend it to 74-53 at halftime and to 106-79 entering the fourth quarter. Milwaukee had a decisive advantage, thanks to the Mavericks’ injuries.
“This is new territory for everyone,” coach Jason Kidd said. “A lot of people haven’t seen this.
“But again, it is next man up and we’re running out of the next man. Tonight, we had eight (players). We can only hope that we came out of this clean with no one hurt.”
Damian Lillard (34 points) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (32 points, 15 rebounds) hurt the Mavs with their shot-making. Lillard was 11-of-15 from the field – he also
was 5-of-8 from downtown – and Antetokounmpo converted 13 of his 20 field goal attempts.
While the loss dropped the Mavs to 32-31 going into Friday’s home game against Memphis, to their credit they said they will never let a loss dampen their spirit.
“I’m really proud of this group,” Thompson said. “It was a tough loss. They’re one of the best teams in the NBA. It’s hard to beat them when you’re missing your front court because that’s the strength of their team, obviously.
“We know what Dame can do, but they’re so big that it’s tough to prevent them from doing what they want to inside at times. But let’s just regroup and get back home and try to win a couple of games.”
Thompson led the Mavs with 28 points in 11-of-27 shots. With Irving now out for the season, Thompson knows the scoring load will likely fall on his shoulders.
“I was being aggressive,” he said. “I came into the game knowing I had to be aggressive, knowing we were undermanned.
“I wish I was a little more efficient. I wish I had a few shots back. I had some great looks out there.”
Naji Marshall also had some great looks and finished with 22 points on 10-of-18 shots, and he, in addition, pulled down 10 rebounds.
“I was just playing hard and trying to do whatever my teammates needed to help get the win or keep the game as close as possible,” Marshall said. “We all play hard (and) we all are there for each other.
“We understand the moment. Like I said, we’ve just been there for each other and just go out and leave it all on the floor.”
The Mavs shot 45.9 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from three-point land, while the Bucks converted 58.4 percent of their field goals and 45.7 percent of their shots from downtown. Milwaukee also used its tall front wall to outrebound the Mavs, 55-30.
“I thought the group did a good job,” Kidd said. “We had a stretch there in the second — maybe in the first — where we just missed shots.”
Brandon Willians contributed 14 points, five rebounds, seven assists and three steals for the Mavs, and Max Christie added 13 points and three steals.
“He played hard,” Marshall said of Williams. “I expect that from B-Will.
“I’ve played against him a few years throughout the NBA, so I already know what to expect. It’s nothing new.”
What was new w
as seeing the 6-6 Marshall trying to lock horns with the 6-11 Antetokounmpo and the 7-1 Brook Lopez.
“He’s guarding Brook or Giannis, so he’s taking on a bigger guy defensively,” Kidd said. “But again, being able to get in between and finish shots is something that he did well tonight for us.”
In the meantime, Kidd knows the injuries have crippled his team, yet he also knows it’s that way sometimes.
“No one feels sorry for us,” Kidd said. “This is a business. We have a job and a responsibility and that’s to go out and play.
“It’s a real simple message. Guys are going to have a great opportunity to play that maybe wouldn’t have gotten that much time.”
All eight players for the Mavs each played at least 24 minutes on Wednesday. And with 19 games remaining, the Mavs are two-and-a-half games up on Phoenix for the final Western Conference play-in tournament spot.
“I see a group that’s willing to put the work in and lay it all out there,” Thompson said. “If we can just give ourselves a chance to get in there (in the play-in tournament) I like our chances of being successful.
“But we’re not even thinking about the playoff picture right now. We’re just thinking about Memphis on Friday and what we got to do to protect home court.”
X: @DwainPrice
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