DALLAS – The home crowd booed loudly at the American Airlines Center during a mid-third quarter timeout on Friday night, as the Dallas Mavericks trailed the Charlotte Hornets by 18 points.
“We probably should have been booed in the first quarter,” said Mavericks coach Jason Kidd after a 117-109 loss to an understaffed Charlotte team that dropped Dallas (36-38) to 11th in the Western Conference standings bags, a place in the ranking. the play-in scenario.
Kidd described the Mavs’ effort as “terrible” and “dog s—” in the first quarter, as the 24-51 Hornets scored 37 points despite missing three starters and playing a backup on the second night. to-back.
“The interest rate level was not high,” Kidd said. “It was just disappointing.”
Dallas entered the game as a 16-point favorite, making this the biggest upset in the NBA this season according to ESPN Stats & Information.
The Mavs’ lone lead of the game came after Luka Doncic drove for a floater on the opening possession. The Hornets led by as much as 21 points before Dallas rallied in the fourth quarter, cutting the deficit to one with 8:30 left, only for Charlotte to respond immediately with a 10–0 run.
Dallas is 7-12 since All-Star guard Kyrie Irving joined the team after a blockbuster run with the Brooklyn Nets that Mav’s management hoped would improve their chances of competing this season. The same goes for 3-7 when Irving and Doncic, who have both dealt with nagging injuries, are in the starting line-up together.
“We have to fight hard, play harder,” said Doncic, who had 34 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in his second appearance since returning from a five-game absence due to a left thigh strain. “That’s about it. We have to show we care and it starts with me first. I just have to lead this team, get better, play harder. It’s up to me.”
Doncic, who was fined $35,000 by the NBA earlier in the day for making a money sign to umpires late in Wednesday’s protested loss to the Golden State Warriors, acknowledged he is as frustrated as he has been in his five-year career.
“I think you can see it with me on the pitch,” said Doncic. “Sometimes I don’t feel like it’s me. I’m just out there. I used to have a lot of fun, laughing on the court, but it was so frustrating for a lot of reasons, not just basketball.”
When asked what else was bothering him, Doncic mentioned problems in his private life.
Irving scoffed at what he called “the fancy words sport likes to use, like hope and concern,” saying an adjustment period was expected after a big mid-season trade. The injuries to Doncic and Irving, who have missed a total of four games due to pain in their right foot, have made that process more difficult.
Nevertheless, Irving attributed the Mavs’ poor start against the Hornets to a lack of energy.
“We’re a very balanced group on days where I feel like we’ve done our very best, and then on days where the energy is faltering or we’re not starting well or the attack isn’t going or people are not taking shots, can be emotionally pulled in other directions that can determine the outcome of games,” said Irving, who had 18 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, but shot poorly (6 of 16 from the floor, including 1 of 8 of 3 point range).
“I’ve been to New York City so I know what that’s like. Of course you want to play well, but there’s only five people on the field who can play for the Dallas Mavericks. If the fans want to switch places, hey, be my dude I have years of work ahead of me to be big enough to be at this level.”
Kyrie Irving
“And we’re still feeling each other out to get used to each other’s efforts, attitude and temperament. And that’s real. That’s a human thing. That’s a human element. Whether people believe it in basketball or not, there’s a very thin line between winning basketball games and everyone being on the same page, and losing basketball games and things shattering and pointing the finger.”
As much as Kidd deserved the boos, Irving didn’t think the fans’ reaction was relevant.
“So? So what? Exactly how I feel about it,” Irving said. “I’ve been to New York City so I know what that’s like. Of course you want to play well, but there’s only five people on the field who can play for the Dallas Mavericks. If the fans want to switch places, hey, be my dude. We still have years of work ahead of us to be big enough to be at this level. But our focus isn’t necessarily on the booing. It should be on our performance and just being there for each other.”