Mavs hoping to use fourth quarter as a springboard to success

When it comes to the Dallas Mavericks playing the Phoenix Suns, what happens in the fourth quarter really, really matters.

The last five times these two clubs met, the Mavs took at least a five-point lead in all five games into the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for the Mavs, the Suns turned up the heat and won all five of those games with a flurry of shot-making.

To put it succinctly, guard Jalen Brunson said: “They put the ball in the hole and we don’t. It’s as simple as that.

“They’re just very efficient when it comes to closing out the fourth quarter. We just have to do a better job with that.”

The Mavs will get a chance to improve their fourth quarter efficiency against Phoenix when they play Game 1 of a best-of-seven Western Conference semifinals series against the Suns on Monday at 9 p.m. at Footprint Center. Game 2 will also be in Phoenix on Wednesday at 9 p.m. before the series shifts to American Airlines Centers for Game 3 and 4 on Friday at 8:30 p.m. and May 8 at 2:30 p.m., respectively.

This trend of the Suns rallying from being down after the third quarter and defeating the Mavs started on Jan. 30, 2021 in Dallas. Phoenix trailed in that game, 82-77, after the third quarter, but outscored the Mavs, 34-23, in the fourth quarter and won, 111-105.

Two days later also in Dallas, the Mavs took another 82-77 lead against Phoenix into the fourth quarter, where they were outscored, 32-26, and lost, 109-108 when Devin Booker drained a three-pointer with just 1.5 seconds remaining.

More of the same happened between the Mavs and Suns in the three games they played each other this season.

Back on Nov. 17, Dallas held a 73-68 lead after three quarters in Phoenix, only to be outscored, 37-25, in the fourth quarter and lose, 105-98. Also in Phoenix on Nov. 19, the Mavs were ahead, 84-79, after three quarters, but got outscored, 33-20, in the final quarter and lost, 112-104.

And on Jan. 20 in Dallas, the Mavs were nursing an 82-74 lead after three quarters, but got outscored, 35-19 in the fourth quarter, and lost, 109-101. These fourth-quarter mishaps are an unsettling trend the Mavs hope will end starting Monday.

“For us, that’s what we have to improve in this series is being able to finish games,” coach Jason Kidd said. “We believe that we’ve gotten better in the fourth quarter since the last time we played Phoenix, so if it comes down to the fourth (quarter) we have to execute on both ends and hopefully the ball bounces our way.”

To hammer home Kidd’s point, the Suns led the NBA in clutch numbers this year with a 33-9 record while shooting 57.8 percent from the field and 43.1 percent from three-point land. The Mavs were seventh with a 22-16 record while converting 44.9 of their field goals and only 28.6 percent of their shots from downtown.

But in the regular season games since Feb. 4, it’s the Mavs who own a lofty 13-2 record during clutch time while shooting 55.4 percent from the floor and 36.4 percent from behind the three-point line. During that same time frame, the Suns are just 13-6 while making 55.1 percent of their field goals and 43.8 percent of their three-pointers.

Clutch points are when the game is within five points with five minutes remaining. The Mavs have improved in this department since the Feb. 10 trade from the Washington Wizards brought in guard Spencer Dinwiddie to align with guards Luka Doncic and Brunson.

“You have three playmakers that you can have out on the floor,” Kidd said. “You can go small. We’ve shown we can go with different lineups, so (we’re) just being able to play different guys at different positions and be comfortable with that.

“That’s one of the things that for us going small or big, we feel comfortable doing either one.”

Brunson also has noticed improvements in the Mavs late-game execution over nearly the past three months.

“We’ve improved a lot,” he said. “We’ve gotten better every day. I think we‘ve gotten better in close-out situations.”

Of course, when it comes to closing out games, Suns guard Chris Paul wrote the book on it. The 17-year veteran averaged eight points in the three fourth quarters of the games against the Mavs this season.

“You look at Chris Paul — their leader — has seen it all, has done it all,” Kidd said. “You look at making plays in the fourth, and Chris does it at a high level.

“Chris has seen it all, so we’ve got to change our pictures and just hopefully we can keep him off balanced.”

And that’s not all.

“They’re the best team in the NBA,” Kidd said. “When you look at the season they had, they have the best coach in basketball (in Monty Williams).

“They can put a lot of pressure on you on defense, and then on the offensive end there’s a lot of guys that can score the ball. Again, we’ve got our hands fill and hopefully we can just keep the game close going into the fourth and find a way to win.”

Kidd also knows that offense was not a source of power with Jazz centers Rudy Gobert and Hassan Whiteside, but that will change with Suns centers Deandre Ayton and JaVale McGee. Thus, the Mavs have to adapt to those changes.

“Our game plan against Utah is not going to work against the Suns,” Kidd said. “We’ve already changed that mindset, because we’re not playing the Jazz.

“We understand (the Suns’) strength. It’s the mid-range. But they can hurt you with the three in transition and they can hurt you in the paint with JaVale and Ayton. This isn’t Gobert or Whiteside. These guys can put the ball in the basket, so our bigs are going to be tested.”

Since Phoenix was 64-18 during the regular season – and eight games better than any other team – Kidd understands why the Suns are favored the beat the Mavs in this series. But even that’s a stern message he can relay to his team as sort of a confidence-builder.

“It’s not us against the world,” Kidd said. “It’s just us against the Suns, and everybody has the Suns favored.

“But the games are scheduled, so we’ve got to go play them and we’ll see what happens.”

The Mavs know they must limit their turnovers in this series in order to stay within shouting distance of the Suns. Especially those live ball turnovers that can easily be transformed into transition layups, dunks or wide-open three-pointers.

“I think when you look at what we did in that first series (against Utah), we took care of the ball and we’re going to have to continue to take care of the ball,” Kidd said.” Luka is going to see two or three guys on him, and you trust that our quarterback is going to make the right plays, and guys have to give him outlets so that he can connect the dots.”

And while connecting the dots, Doncic thrives on winning these one-on-one battles against top perimeter defenders such as Mikal Bridges and Jae Crowder. And he doesn’t mind getting Ayton in a high pick-n-roll so he can go one-on-one against the Suns’ center.

“I think it’s more or less, (Doncic) likes the challenge, and we all know that,” Kidd said. “But it’s not against Bridges or against Ayton or Crowder. It’s against the Suns.

“If he has two or three guys on him, we truly believe he’s going to make the right play and he’ll find the open guy. There’s going to be times where it’s just one-on-one, and we think that he has the advantage.”

The Mavs just want to be in position where when it comes down to the frantic fourth quarter, this time they’ll truly have the advantage Particularly since Brunson said the series might be decided on which teams performs the best in the clutch.

“They’re pretty good in the fourth quarter,” Brunson said. “We just have to be very efficient and make them make mistakes and limit ours.”

REACHING THE FINISH LINE: Suns point guard Chris Paul turns 37 on Friday. That brings back memories for Mavs coach Jason Kidd, who was 38 years old when he was the starting point guard when Dallas won the 2011 NBA title.

“That’s all you’re thinking about is getting to the finish line, but you’ve got to take steps,” Kidd said. “Each finish line is a little different because it’s a series.

“And then as you start to turn different birthdays at this age, you just hope that you don’t have to slide to go to the bathroom. You just want to be able to walk. And you hope the floor is warm to warm up the feet.”

Even Kidd had to laugh at his own comments.

“It gets a little harder, especially when you play a lot of minutes,” he said. “But Chris has done an incredible job with his body and mind.

“He changed his diet, he looks great and he’s playing at a high level. You just got to make sure scorpions aren’t in your slippers.”

KOKOSKOV COACHED THREE SUNS’ STARTERS: While coach Jason Kidd often leans on his assistant coaches for advice, he may be leaner a little harder these days on assistant coach Igor Kokoskov.

That’s because Kokoskov was the Suns’ head coach during the 2018-’19 season and coached three players who are currently in the Suns’ starting lineup – Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton and Mikal Bridges. So, does Kokoskov has some inside information on that Suns’ trio that he can give Kidd?

“I think the questions are asked, but that was a while ago and they’ve developed a little bit more since his absence,” Kidd said. “I think they’re a different team than when Igor had them.

“But just understanding their tendencies and what they like to do, we definitely will ask (Kokoskov) to make sure that we cover all the bases.”

BRIEFLY: A few weeks ago, coach Jason Kidd said Tim Hardaway Jr. wouldn’t play again until next season after he underwent surgery on Feb. 1 to address a fracture to the fifth metatarsal in his left foot which occurred during a Jan. 25 game at the Golden State Warriors. But Kidd started Sunday’s post-practice media session by saying: “Timmie began straight ahead jogging this week. In three to four weeks, he will progress to cutting and jumping. These steps will lead to his return to basketball activities. But that date is undetermined at this time.”. .So how do the Mavs prioritize what their scouts relayed to them in regards to the Suns? “We talked about the importance of the three things both offensively and defensively and we’ll go from there,” Kidd said. “Game 1 is tomorrow. It’s not Game 7. We’ll do our best and execute the game plan on the road, and in-game adjustments are going to be needed.”. .His players like to refer to Jason Kidd as a player’s coach. To that, Kidd, 49, said: “An old player’s coach. My job as a coach — having been in those shoes as a player — is just to give them the answers and to let them know that it’s not going to be perfect (and) we’re going to make mistakes. But as long as we play hard and we protect one another and play for one another, things tend to work out. And lastly, just to have fun. It’s a game. And this group has done that.”

Twitter: @DwainPrice