PHOENIX – It’s been so long since the Mavericks have been out of the first round of the playoffs, they’ve kind of forgotten how to act.
Understandable, since most of their heavy lifters have never played this deep into the NBA postseason.
But what they must convince themselves is that they can’t lean on anything that happened in the 4-2 series win over Utah in the first round.
It’s gone. Nothing that happened is going to make life any better for them after they lost Game 1 to the Phoenix Suns.
Game 2 on Wednesday will require adjustments and upgraded execution.
And holding Phoenix under 121 points.
“That helps, yeah,” as Dwight Powell said Tuesday at practice.
Execution priority No. 1 will be the rebounding. It was terrible in Game 1.
Yes, it was terrible in Game 1 (and 2) against Utah, too, And the Mavericks recovered. But as we’ve stated, that means nothing to them now.
This challenge is going to require more elbow grease, as Powell said.
“Team effort – we just got to lock in, especially on their offensive rebounders,” he said. “Cracking their guys. Sometimes you have the opportunity to sandwich guys on rebounds, especially when there’s a mismatch. That’s pretty much what it comes down to.”
Cracking, sandwiching.
Essentially, getting tougher and matching the in-your-face grit that Jae Crowder, Mikal Bridges and most of the Suns deliver.
And make no mistake about the importance of toughness when it comes to rebounding. The Mavericks were smashed 51-36 on the glass. That’s a clear recipe for disaster.
One of the problems is that the Suns are playing a totally different defense than Utah did in the first round. The Jazz tried to blitz Luka Dončić, get the ball out of his hands and live with the results as they ignored the perimeter shooters.
Utah paid the price.
But the Suns are committed – at least they were in Game 1 – to playing one-on-one defense. That means it’s more isolation, more post-ups and fewer open looks for the shooters.
And it also means dealing with Deandre Ayton, the Suns athletic center. With the Suns playing straight-up defense, it’s been tougher for Powell to get loose when he and Dončić work the pick and roll that has resulted in so many lob-pass dunks for Powell.
“It’s super important,” Powell said. “Obviously, he’s a very skilled player and got a great touch. You got to account for him at all times offensively. He has the size and athleticism to be an issue on the offensive glass.
“So it’s a team effort in terms of rebounding when it comes to him. Same with (JaVale) McGee. It’s something we got to do a better job at.”
And as for the way the Suns played defense in Game 1?
“It’s a different look and something we’re going to look at on film and try to find ways to still be effective,” Powell said. “But with every adjustment, there’s something that will change for us in terms of our reads. So we just got to continue to make those right reads.”
Coach Jason Kidd has seen a game’s worth of film – over and over, most likely – and there is no way he can sugarcoat the obvious need to rebound better.
“You can’t give them opportunities where you give them rebounds and tips after tip,” You got to be able to come up with the rebound. That’s all five on the floor. No matter if we’re playing small or big. We got to rebound the ball.”
And that means Powell, Maxi Kleber and everybody else is going to be on watch in Game 2.
Twitter: @ESefko
Share and comment