Irving put in a great performance against the 66ers

Kyrie Irving entered last Thursday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers after posting his highest scoring game yet.Kyrie during his short stint with the Dallas Mavericks. But he knew exactly how to make a neat restoration.

After scoring just 16 points on 7-of-18 shooting on Tuesday when they lost 124-122 to the Indiana Pacers, Irving recovered well, scoring 40 points on 15-of-22 shooting against the Sixers. It was Irving’s highest-scoring game since the Mavs acquired him on February 6 in a trade with the Brooklyn Nets.

Meanwhile, coach Jason Kidd knew that Irving would not let what happened against the Pacers happen against the Sixers.

“I don’t think he’s had a bad game in a row in his career,” Kidd said after Friday’s practice. “I think he said it best – he wanted to join the party.”

Kidd knew that Irving had a strong desire to join the party when he usually missed the last four or five minutes of the third quarter, but he talked Kidd into letting him play nine minutes and five seconds of the third quarter.

“He was at a high level,” Kidd said. “Due to the fact that we constantly pulled him out, he asked to stay.

“Whenever a player does this, you know that he is moving in the direction he is going to help you win or put your team in position to win. KyrieThat’s who he is. He’s a professional.”

Kidd also noted that Irving doesn’t mind being in the middle of heavy traffic and setting up screens that will allow his teammates to get a wide view of the basket. In addition, he acknowledged that as the Mavs move forward, bringing Luka Doncic and Irving together in some pick and roll should be beneficial for the Mavs.

“He loves being on screen,” Kidd said of Irving. “He’s not afraid to test to open someone up. As the season goes on, we (Irving and Doncic) will use pick-and-roll a little more, just to see what the defense is going to do.

“Besides, it just creates a problem because of the severity of the double team. You don’t drop Kai on Luka. Kai’s gaming skills as well as his shooting skills are too good.”

The same can be said for Doncic, who scored 42 points on 13-of-22 shooting in a 133-126 win over the Sixers on Thursday.

“It was a tough game and we did everything we could to make sure we were ready to play,” Irving said. “We just kept a close eye on the game plan.

“In recent weeks there have been several defeats in which we felt like winners. It’s definitely a different approach (Thursday) for us as a team because we really wanted it (beating the 6ers). I really wanted it.”

The Mavs eventually set a franchise record against the 66ers by hitting 25 3-pointers in 48 attempts. Irving was brilliant 6 out of 8Kyrie off three-point ground, and Doncic was a hot 7-of-13 from downtown, while the Mavs were shooting 54.9 percent from the field overall.

“I think last night against a really good team at the Sixers, to be able to do those shots where Kai and Luka could hit the paint or create their own shot, I thought that only threes were great qualities. what we got in the first half,” Kidd said. “But in the second half we threw the same shots and Reggie (Bullock) knocked him down, which helped us widen the gap.”

Bullock converted 5 of 10 shots from three-point territory, and his critical hit and 15 points were almost lost in the shuffle due to Doncic and Irving’s dominating play.

“It’s easy to do when two guys have 82 points,” Kidd said. “I think when you saw that LD was at a high level, Kai was at a high level, but I think the guys who played with them will see that they will be widely looked at because of the double teams.

“I think as long as we keep working on it and keep playing a little faster, I think it helps us.”

CHILD CAREKyrieD ABOUT THE BIG LEAD TO BE CUT: Of course, coach Jason Kidd was delighted that his team was able to snap a two-game losing streak with Thursday’s win over the Philadelphia 76ers.

However, the path that the Mavs took towards the circle of winners concerns Kidd. In particular, what happened at the beginning of the fourth quarter left all Mavs fans inside and outside of American Airlines a little worried.

After extending their lead to 107-82 at the end of the third quarter, the Mavs took a 110-91 lead in the fourth quarter. However, the 6ers tied the first 15 points of the fourth quarter to an inch to within 110–106 from the Mavs less than three minutes into the last quarter.

It was reminiscent of last Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers, when the Mavs took a 27-point lead in the third quarter and then lost the game 111-108.

“It was hard to watch,” Kidd said. “It’s like the Lakers game in terms of passes, live passes. In two minutes he went from a lead of 19 points to 10 (points).

“We just need to keep a better eye on the ball. And then, in defense, it’s hard to guard live ball passes when no one is around.Kyrie protection. On the other hand, we give up too many i-units. Not only three-point shots, but also “i-ones” are counted as three points.

MAVS FACE NEW-LOOK SUNS: On Sunday at noon, the Mavs (33-31) will take on the updated Phoenix Suns (35-29).

This is the Suns team that acquired 13-time All-Star forward Kevin Durant in a Feb. 9 trade with the Brooklyn Nets. In this deal, several so-called pundits are predicting that the Suns are now in the best position to win their first-ever NBA championship.

Especially since Durant joined three-time All-Star defenseman Devin Booker and 12-time All-Star defenseman Chris Paul.

“They’re different from the ones we’ve played the last three times,” said coach Jason Kidd. “They have All-Stars in three positions. I have to say there could be four of them with (center Deandre) Ayton.

“Look at Chris Paul, Booker, Ayton and KD, they are really good and well trained. It will be a good test for us.”

Ironically, less than a month ago, Mavs defensemen Kyrie Irving and Durant were teammates with the Nets. Now they’re both fighting for the same thing on different teams – a spot representing the Western Conference in the NBA Finals.

Twitter: @DwainPrice

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