LAS VEGAS – At training camp in 2022, Luka Dončić and Jason Kidd both said that they knew tempering expectations would be impossible after the Mavericks made a run to the Western Conference finals the previous season.
Some necessary moves ended up scuttling that 2022-23 season.
But now, the Mavericks are back in similar situation. Their trip to the NBA Finals in June means that fans now expect more. The pressure most certainly is on.
To which Luka says: Bring it on.
“I love it because that means we did something great,” Dončić said. “I’ve been dealing with this since Real Madrid (when he was 17). I think for the whole team that should be a motivation.”
It’s not like the Mavericks can’t handle it. Their three veteran leaders all have won championships, although Luka’s came in Europe. Kyrie Irving won one with Cleveland and Klay Thompson got four rings at Golden State.
Dončić is set for his seventh season in Dallas and, as always, he said there is one word to sum up his expectations.
“Championship. That’s the goal,” he said.
And one aspect of this season is going to make it a lot more fun for Dončić – and Thompson, too, for that matter.
“Luka’s one of the best players with the ball in his hands in the world,” Thompson said Tuesday after the first practice of training camp. “It’s a pleasure to be on the recipient end of that. He’s going to generate a ton of great looks for me.”
And it’s a major change for Thompson in one respect.
“On the flip side, it was just a nightmare trying to guard him and Kyrie,” Thompson said. “It’s just really exciting to be a part of something special here. This team was so close to accomplishing a huge goal last year and I’m trying to carry that momentum into this season.”
Dončić can sense that momentum as well.
While losing in the Finals to Boston left a nasty aftertaste, it also fanned the flame of an already robust fire in the point guard’s belly.
And getting Thompson has merely upped the heat even more.
“Unbelievable,” Dončić said of his initial reaction to the trade that landed Thompson. “I mean he’s a four-time champion. He’s an amazing player. So I was very excited. I can’t wait to play with him.”
“You basically can’t help off of him. Me and Kai, when we have the ball, you can’t leave (Thompson) because if you leave him wide-open, he’s going to make it. So I think spacing is going to be crucial for us.”
That formula will come as the season evolves, but there is no doubting that Luka is stoked about the possibilities.
And, he said that remembering the sting of the Finals should be a constant helper to the Mavericks.
“You know, it’s different from other games,” he said of the Finals experience. “I don’t know why. I can’t explain it. But just being there feels different. And obviously, last year wasn’t good enough. We wanted to win it all. So, it’s a big motivation.”
While Tuesday was the first official day of training camp, the Mavericks have been together in Dallas for a handful of pickup games and informal workouts. Coach Jason Kidd has like what he’s seen so far from Luka.
“He’s ready to go,” Kidd said. “He’s excited about the team. I don’t want to say he had extra pep, but he understands what we’re trying to do and he’s ready to go.”
Kidd and the rest of Mavs’ nation would expect nothing less from the face of the franchise.
Vegas hospitality: Kidd said the main reason the Mavericks are having four days of training camp in Las Vegas is because it’s the home of the new owners.
The team gathered with owners Miriam Adelson and son-in-law Patrick Dumont on Monday night for dinner and camaraderie.
“Our ownership group, that’s the main reason we’re here,” Kidd said of the Vegas training camp. “Our new owners live here in Vegas and we had a nice dinner last night at their home. So training camp has started on the right foot.
“When you talk about the Adelson family, they want to win. They want to win championships. What they’ve done here in half a year, we go to the NBA Finals and we believe that we got better this summer and hopefully we can find our way back to the Finals.”
Almost a Rebel: Kidd is a proud product of the University of California, where he had a sterling basketball career before blazing trails in the NBA.
But it could have all been different, he said after the Mavericks practiced on the UNLV campus Tuesday.
He almost signed with the Rebels instead of the Golden Bears.
“It was very close,” he said. “UNLV, growing up, was one of my favorite schools. (They had) Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon, Greg Anthony, coach Tark (Jerry Tarkanian) and Gurgs (Tim Grgurich, who is with the Mavericks at this camp) here.
“So every kid on the West Coast wanted to come to UNLV and I was one of those.”
Briefly: Part of the Mavericks’ traveling party for camp included a lot of former players, including Shawn Marion and Rolando Blackman. It was an idea cultivated by general manager Nico Harrison. “What Nico has done is incredible, the alums, to invite them here to training camp,” Kidd said. “They’re part of the family and we’ll see those guys throughout the week.” Also on hand was former NBA head coach Frank Vogel, who coached the Lakers to the 2020 NBA title with Kidd as one of his assistants . . . The Mavericks had two practices on Tuesday and also will have two on Wednesday. They will use Thursday as a recovery day and practice once on Friday before returning to Dallas Saturday. Kidd said the goal of the first day of practice was to “get up and down, sweat, hear the coaches’ voices, hear each other’s voices.” Kessler Edwards and Maxi Kleber were the only players sitting out with aches and pains . . . The Fan Jam open practice is Sunday at 1 p.m. at American Airlines Center.
X: @ESefko
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