The Mavericks already were aware of just how hard it’s going to be to tread water while they remain severely shorthanded.
And in case they forgot, they got a stern reminder on Saturday.
The Milwaukee Bucks are fighting for playoff positioning in the Eastern Conference just like the Mavericks are in the West. And when the Mavericks took a 132-117 setback, it left them in 10th place in the West.
“We’re obviously aware of where we are in the season, so no time to complain or whine,” Kyrie Irving said. “Just make sure we’re preparing the right way. And when we’re out there, just sticking together (is important). Some games are going to look good, some games are not going to look as good.”
Saturday fell into the latter category. But the Mavericks are hopeful that help is on the way. Their injured big men remain out for at least a few more games. But Caleb Martin, the hard-nosed swingman who has been out since Jan. 10 when he was with Philadelphia because of a hip injury, has begun playing pick-up games and if there are no setbacks, he could be available later this week.
After that, it will be a waiting game for Daniel Gafford (knee), Dereck Lively II (ankle) and Anthony Davis (adductor).
“Unfortunately – I think I’ve used that work unfortunate quite a few times when it comes to our guys’ injuries,” Irving said. “The timing of everything happening is not ideal. But the sentiments are pretty much the same – everybody get as healthy as they can, come back when you can. And then we rock with whoever’s in the lineup.”
That’s the game plan. Hopefully it’s a blueprint they can put into action sooner than later.
Here’s our other takeaways from the loss to Milwaukee:
Crooked shooting: The Mavericks shot just 27.5 percent from three-point range (11-of-40). “There’s a couple guys who are not shooting the ball well right now and that happens,” coach Jason Kidd said. “We just have to keep working. We shot 27 percent from three. We got 40 up, we just didn’t make them.” And, Kidd said, there’s a nasty residue when the shots aren’t going down. “We struggled. We came out flat and we missed some shots,” he said. “And when we look at ourselves right now, when we’re not scoring, our energy drops. We got to address that.”
The defense rests: And we don’t mean in a good way, like a JAG episode. We mean like the Mavericks allowed at least 30 points in all four quarters. It’s hard to win that way and it’s why Kidd had to jumble the lineup a few times in the second half, sitting Klay Thompson and P.J. Washington (who didn’t return because of ankle soreness). “We were trying to get stops,” he said. “You have to figure out how to stop the leak. So we brought him (Thompson) and P.J. out and P.J. was out for the night. Guarding the three-point line, we just did not do a good job tonight.”
Best things in life: They’re free, remember. And the Bucks took advantage of the free points from 15 feet as they made 31 of 35 free-throws. “We put them on the free-throw line a bunch,” Irving said. “I mean, they had 31 makes. That in itself, if you give a team 31 free chances, they’re going to be in a rhythm.” Milwaukee outscored the Mavericks by 11 at the free-throw line, which more than made up for the Mavs’ rare win in points in the paint (58-46).
Thanks for the help: Moses Brown’s tenure with the Mavericks came to an end as his 10-day contract expires and the Mavericks have no resources with which to re-up him. But he more than earned his deal. In his final two games, he started and averaged 19 points and 10 rebounds. Irving complimented Brown’s “ability to learn on the fly and seamlessly fit in. “When you’re adapting, fitting into what we got going on here, it usually works out well. Moses did a great job filling in for our bigs. You know, he did all he could. That’s all you can ask for.”
X: @ESefko
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