LAS VEGAS – Jaden Hardy has gone through the school of hard knocks in the G-League and has had a lot of other teaching moments on the basketball court.
As the Mavericks’ superstar of summer league this week, he’s learning another invaluable lesson.
How to be the big fish.
Admittedly, the NBA 2K24 summer league isn’t the biggest pond that Hardy hopes to be swimming in during his career.
But games like Wednesday’s, when Hardy and the Mavericks had to grind out a 98-96 overtime win over Golden State, prove that Hardy is learning what it’s like to be The Man.
“It’s huge for Hardy,” Mavs summer-league coach Jared Dudley said. “He’s not shooting the ball well. (But) we’re winning games. A lot’s going on. We’re having him guard some of the best players. Offensively, they’re having the best player guard him. They’re sinking. They know his game.
“Sometimes he’s pressing. But we’ll take it. He was 6-of-20 (6-of-19 shooting, officially) in a win. We’ve seen all different type of players do this at one point in time.”
Hardy had the ball in his hands twice with the game on the line. The first was at the end of regulation when he shot a step-back jumper that got blocked.
Then, with the game tied at 96 in overtime, he had another chance and a second step-back three-pointer was off the mark.
Those two plays could have been costly and Dudley said blame was spread equally.
“One thing I did tell the team and Hardy, the fourth quarter before the end of it, that was my fault on the play call,” Dudley said. “The ball screen, I got to give him enough space and timing.
“Overtime was his fault. I got the matchup I wanted. He had spacing to drive, he shot a step-back. But that’s one thing about this team . . . we stuck with it, crashed, tip-dunk for the win. I was excited.”
The tip-dunk was courtesy of Braxton Key, who had blocked a Golden State shot on the other end, setting up the break that ended with him jamming in a miss to end the game.
In summer-league, overtimes are finished when one team reaches seven points.
Hardy continued to put up some of the best numbers in the summer league. He finished with 21 points despite the off shooting night.
And learning to be the team leader and dealing with all the pressure that comes with that is something that should serve Hardy well in his second season with the Mavericks. Sometimes we forget that he didn’t turn 21 until July 5.
And he’s had a big impact on teammates who have yet to get their feet wet in the NBA.
“We all know how (good) Jaden Hardy is,” said Mike Miles Jr., who stepped in as the starter in the backcourt alongside Hardy and had 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting. “I don’t think he should even be playing (at summer league). He’s that good.
“He’s a scorer. He’s a great teammate and always puts confidence in everybody. And he doesn’t get mad when you miss a shot. We want him to shoot. He’s the best player on the team. We go as he goes.”
Said O-Max Prosper: “He’s a great player, a great scorer. For me, to play with a guy like that who has one year under his belt, he knows how to rise over guys and make the right play and get to the free-throw line, it’s awesome to play with a guy like that.”
Key to the game: Braxton Key is one of the oldest players at the summer league at 26 and has one of the most famous uncles of anyone playing in Vegas – Ralph Sampson.
But Key made his own moment on Wednesday.
He blocked a potential game-winning shot by Golden State rookie Brandin Podziemski, then followed the ensuing fast break and cleaned up a miss by O-Max Prosper with a game-ending dunk.
Summer-league overtimes are decided by the first team to seven points. The dunk gave the Mavericks eight points and a 98-96 win.
“There was a little breakdown defensively and one of their guys was open underneath,” Key said. “I made a block, we took over, O-Max got the rebound and was pushing it. I was just following up and trying to make a play.
“In summer league, it’s all about learning, just trying to play as good as we can in high-pressure situations. It brings out the best in everybody. I’m glad we came out with the win.”
Said Dudley: “That was a hell of a win.”
The Mavericks got double-doubles from their two first-round picks, 17 points and 10 rebounds from Prosper and 11 points and 10 rebounds from Dereck Lively II.
The Mavericks now are 2-1 in Vegas and will play Indiana at 6 p.m. Dallas time on Friday. They will have another game after that against an opponent to be determined.
Briefly: McKinley Wright IV (ankle) did not play on Wednesday . . . The Mavericks will practice on Thursday ahead of Friday’s game . . . The overtime format took some getting used to. In the summer league, the first team to score seven points wins. That brings into play the possibility of fouling quickly if a team needs to score three points and is trying to set up a three-pointer. “That’s what we did in the G-League last year,” Key said. “Seven points, you got to lock in. For sure, there’s strategy. Some teams foul. Some teams let you play.” Both teams went for three pointers on consecutive possessions before they both got to 96 and only needed one point to win. The Mavericks got two on Key’s dunk.
Twitter: @ESefko
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