One of the best things about Jason Kidd’s coaching is that he’s willing to use the regular season to see what works and what doesn’t – hopefully winning games along the way while experimenting.
That philosophy is at the core of most of his decisions when it comes to playing time, who starts and who finishes, which is far more important in his mind.
That’s why he allowed Josh Green to step into the starting lineup in the Mavericks’ 121-115 win over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday. That meant having Derrick Jones Jr. come off the bench for the first time this season after starting the first 16 games. And this move came with Jones’ blessing.
The results?
They couldn’t have been much better. Jones came off the bench to score 15 points, grab six rebounds and make five of seven shots in 34 minutes.
Green? He had five points and seven rebounds as the Mavericks stayed relatively even with the Rockets on the boards.
And, of course, they won, which pretty much made it a win-win-win.
“Just to see how Josh handled it and also how D-Jones handled it.” Kidd said of his decision-making. “I talked to him (Jones) about it. He’s a pro. He said: all I want to do is win. Whatever you need me to do, coach.
“He didn’t do anything to come out of the starting lineup. Sometimes everybody gets caught up in having your name announced to start the game. But it’s about finishing the game. That’s where you get paid.”
And does it require a certain amount of unselfishness among players? Of course. But when you are 11-6 like the Mavericks, the trust factor obviously has gone up in the locker room.
“D-Jones is a pro. That’s why we wanted him,” Kidd said. “Not just because of the shots or the rebounding or the defense he’s playing. But he’s about winning. And he showed that by giving a teammate an opportunity to start and Josh did a great job starting.”
Here’s our other takeaways from the Mavericks’ win Tuesday, which we will use with a baseball twist, since Rangers’ superstar Adolis Garcia was in the front row and traded jerseys with Luka Dončić during a meet and greet:
BY THE NUMBERS: The Mavericks shot 34 three-pointers. That was tied for the lowest number of triples in a game this season and just the third time in 17 games that they’ve hoisted fewer than 40 from beyond the arc. They are 2-1 in those games. Houston does a good job of chasing opponents off the three-point line, so it was good to see the Mavericks able to win a different way. Sort of like hitting the curve ball in baseball.
BULLPEN CAME THROUGH: The Mavericks’ four players off the bench scored 40 points. Houston got 30 from its reserves. That’s what’s known is holding a lead in baseball, and every bit as important in basketball.
THE STOPPER: He’s also known as the ace of the staff. And that’s what Dončić did, stop the Mavericks from going on a losing streak with 41 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. Kidd was right in his postgame analysis. Sometimes we take him for granted because he’s a “walking triple-double.” Suffice it to say that when he and Kyrie Irving combine for 68 points, the Mavericks have a 1-2 combination that is darn hard to beat.
X: @ESefko
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