Jason Kidd: Mavs Star Luka Doncic ‘Most Likely Done For Season’ After Bulls Game
Mavs #Mavs
With two games remaining in the regular season and a chance at fighting their way into the play-in tournament, the Dallas Mavericks have opted to hit the rest button and play for the draft lottery.
DALLAS — No one could have predicted that this Dallas Mavericks’ season would end in such deflating fashion.
Coming into Friday night’s game against the Chicago Bulls, the Mavs sit as the No. 11 seed in the Western Conference, just 0.5 games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder for the final play-in spot.
To jump the Thunder, Dallas would need to win both of their final two games and hope that OKC loses their last game of the season against the Memphis Grizzlies.
And though that scenario could very well be in play, the Mavericks’ brass called an audible on Friday, choosing to rest their core rotation, including Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, practically throwing in the towel on their 2022-23 season.
“Things change,” Jason Kidd said prior to Friday’s game. “…Understanding that we were fighting for our lives and understanding that this is the situation that we’re in but the organization made the decision to change and we have to go by that.”
Irving, along with Christian Wood, Josh Green, Maxi Kleber, and Tim Hardaway Jr. are out for tonight’s contest vs. Chicago while Doncic will start but only see the floor for the first 12 minutes.
“He’s going to play the first quarter and then he’s done for the season,” Kidd said of Doncic. When asked to clarify if Doncic was indeed ‘done for the season’, Kidd said that ‘most likely’ was the plan.
This decision comes just days after Doncic voiced his desire to continue playing while there’s still a chance for Dallas to make the postseason.
“When there’s still a chance, I’m going to play,” Doncic said following Tuesday’s practice. “So, that’s not going to happen.”
Yet, the organization saw otherwise as the Mavericks are on the cusp to potentially retain their top-10 pick that was initially sent to the New York Knicks in the Kristaps Porzingis trade. This turn of events comes after a disappointing 1-7 stretch that bumped Dallas on the outside of the play-in.
Kidd, like any coach in this situation, seemed rather stoic when discussing the decision, stating that the decision was on the Mavericks’ leadership of Mark Cuban and Nico Harrison, and the team was hopeful to have the chance to play the season out.
“We want to have the opportunity to find a way to get in. We were going to play until told otherwise,” said Kidd. “And today is the day that we’ve been told that we’re going to do something different.”
For a team in Dallas, who is strapped for flexibility when it comes to cap space and overall young talent, being able to keep that top-10 pick would mean a lot, whether used for the draft pick or as a trade piece for a win-now move to place next to Doncic and hopefully a re-signed Irving.
Now, could the Mavs’ reserves come out tonight like gangbusters and sneak past the undermanned Bulls? Sure, it’s certainly not out of the question. But Cuban and Harrison made their decision today on what their plans are going forward, and that’s to lay this season to bed and start anew.
It’s understandable to an extent, but starting anew in this manner with Irving’s upcoming decision and the never-ending worry of Doncic’s future happiness is nothing short of concerning.