With the Mavericks’ scrimmage against the Los Angeles Lakers coming up on Thursday, coach Rick Carlisle got a glimpse over the weekend of how the games are going to look in Orlando when the regular season resumes later this month.
His biggest takeaway: “This is like next-level, unbelievable stuff.”
Carlisle on Saturday toured the largest of the three venues where games will be played on the Disney campus in the NBA bubble. He went with Oklahoma City guard Chris Paul and Dwight Powell, the Mavericks’ injured center.
It was a guided tour by deputy NBA commissioner Mark Tatum.
And while the environment will be different without a packed house of fans in the stands, Carlisle said the NBA has figured out ways to pump as much electricity as possible into the games.
“It’s uncertain exactly how it will be different,” Carlisle said. “We saw the digital boards in their full operation mode. There’s going to be pictures of actual fans on the digital boards. It will look, in effect, like there are people in the arena.
“Those faces in actuality are people sitting in front of their computers at home watching the game being streamed on a computer. Their faces are on a digital board and my understanding is they have the ability to affect the amount of noise made in terms of cheering somehow in their computer.”
Carlisle admitted he expects the atmosphere to be different with out fans. But he expects the intensity to be there.
“With so much at stake, it’s important that our players feel what that next level of intensity is all about,” he said. “NBA playoff basketball is really one of the most amazing experiences in sport. It’s very important that we get this experience.
“And that we approach it from the standpoint that we’re here to win.”
Kidd-Gilchrist arrives: Forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist made it to Orlando on Saturday and was out of quarantine in time to take part in Monday’s practice. He said his delay in getting to Orlando was because of personal situations.
“I’m excited to be back with my teammates,” Kidd-Gilchrist said. “We have a lot to look forward to as a team. And also, me personally.”
Budding rivalry: Apparently, life in the bubble has produced a new sport for the Mavericks to gravitate to – plus a new rivalry among them.
Social media has been flush with videos about pickleball, a sports that has elements of tennis, badminton and ping pong.
But the biggest hit has been Spikeball Pro, which has elements of beach volleyball, but requires players to hit the ball off a net close to the ground to a point where the opponent can’t reach it.
“There’s a game that’s kind of an ongoing match,” Carlisle said. “It’s (J.J.) Barea and (Luka) Doncic against (Maxi) Kleber and Tim Hardaway. And it is fun to watch. It’s like watching a high-level game of beach volleyball.
“This has been a fantastic environment for our team to get to know each other better, get closer, do activities together. A lot of guys have gone fishing together. There’s pickleball. There’s golf. There’s a lot going on here.”
Asked who the MVP of the Spikeball game would be, Carlisle said: “I’m going to guess Luka’s good at it because he’s pretty much good at anything he tries.”
Twitter: @ESefko
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