The NBA trading deadline is Feb. 8 and the next week promises to be full of speculation, some of it believable, most of it laughable.
And with the Mavericks facing their share of issues after a 7-8 January, they have to ask themselves a hard question.
In terms that everybody can understand given the current health situation of the team: Does this team need surgery, or just a Band-Aid or two?
It’s easy to have a knee-jerk reaction after Wednesday’s 121-87 loss at Minnesota when the Mavericks were solidly in the game until the middle of the third quarter, then let things unravel. But when Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving are sidelined with injuries, the odds of the Mavericks winning any game are reduced. Add Dereck Lively II, Dante Exum and Derrick Jones Jr. to the absentee list and the odds get stacked even higher.
That’s the starting lineup Jason Kidd has been waiting to see for the past month. It’s a good thing he’s a patient man.
The key point is that the Mavericks have been hoping to find out exactly what kind of team they are. Injuries have kept them from getting a handle on that. They have two superstars who have played like superstars. But the injury gods have limited the number of games that Luka and Kyrie have played together.
And getting more consistency out of Josh Green, Jaden Hardy and Grant Williams would go a long way toward easing the burden that Irving and Dončić carry nightly – when they are available.
But if you look objectively, the fact that the Mavericks have gone 14-14 since Dec. 8 – the date Irving suffered a heel injury in Portland – is commendable.
Irving has played just 10 games since then.
Injuries happen. Some teams are luckier than others when it comes to player-games missed. But the Mavericks are where they are and all they can do is look ahead to the coming weeks and, with any luck, better health.
And on that note, here’s our other takeaways from the loss at Minnesota.
A bright spot: Yes, there was one, believe it or not. Richaun Holmes has been on the outside looking in for most of this season when it comes to playing time. But with Lively out with a broken nose, Holmes started against the Wolves and responded with 11 points and 10 rebounds. He fought hard with Rudy Gobert, who did not have a particularly impactful night (although Karl-Anthony Towns did). “I knew D-Live was probably going to be out with the nose, so I tried to be prepared,” Holmes said. “My job description is to stay ready. It’s not really that tough for me.” It will be interesting going forward to see if Holmes continues to see more playing time, particularly with Milwaukee’s jumbo front line coming to town on Saturday.
Are the Wolves for real? The short answer is that you don’t build a 34-14 record, best in the Western Conference nearing the All-Star break, without being legitimate. True, they are shy on playoff experience, but on a night when Anthony Edwards had just nine points, the Wolves found other ways to win. And their bench is sneaky deep with Naz Reid, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Kyle Anderson.
Wrong numbers: Speaking of rebounding, the Mavericks didn’t do much of it. They were out-boarded by 45-31 and in the second half it was a ridiculous 27-10. Couple that with 37 percent shooting after halftime and the Mavericks had no chance.
X: @ESefko
Share and comment