The results of a preseason game may not show up in the record books, however Jason Kidd made his unofficial debut as the Dallas Mavericks head coach on Wednesday, and the exhibition win is one he’ll likely remember for a long time.
Coach Kidd’s Mavericks played inspired basketball in their preseason opener and came away with a 111-101 victory at American Airlines Center. While J-Kidd admitted the team is still learning the ins and outs of his offense, he was happy with the effort and overall play of his squad.
“I thought the guys did a great job,” Coach Kidd said after the victory. “Also, we hadn’t worked on any of our switch attack offense, and then we still at the half had put up 61. It’s good to see the guys playing at a high level, being unselfish on the offensive end, and again, defensively, I thought they did a really good job for the first time out.”
Without starters Dorian Finney-Smith and Dwight Powell, Jason was able to test out new lineup rotations to see what might and might not work for the team when the regular season starts. One thing that impressed Jason was the one-two tandem of Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis, who only played in the first half, but displayed the kind of chemistry that coach Kidd hopes will lead the team throughout the season.
“You could see Luka was trying to get him the ball in the flow — nothing forced,” Kidd said. “I thought Luka looked great, as if he never stopped playing this summer.”
Doncic played 15 minutes before sitting out the rest of the game, but he took advantage of every minute he was on the floor, dominating the Jazz in every facet of the game. Finishing his night with 19 points, six rebounds and five assists, Luka looked comfortable in J-Kidd’s offense and showed a promising glimpse at what’s to come in his third season.
Going into the third quarter with a 61-56 lead, the Mavericks got a look at some of the guys fighting for a spot on the roster, including undrafted rookie guard Carlik Jones, who impressed in his 14-minute appearance. The Louisville product made six of his 10 attempts from the field for 13 points and showed Jason and the Mavs front office that they may have found a potential hidden gem in the NBA Draft.
J-Kidd also saw some surprising developments from 33-year-old center Boban Marjanovic, who displayed a perimeter scoring touch on two 3-point makes. The seven-foot-four veteran has attempted just 35 career 3-pointers, but Jason loved Marjanovic’s willingness to pull it from deep.
“Bobie was great in the post,” Kidd said. “Then he showed, which I think was the coolest play of the game, Jalen Brunson setting him up for that first three. The second three, that was Bobie’s call. He broke the play.”
Jason and the Mavericks have three more preseason games to get acclimated to the new system, but for a one-game sample, there’s certainly a lot for Jason to feel good about.
Dallas returns to action on Friday night back in Dallas for their final preseason home game, as they host another fellow Western Conference contender, the Los Angeles Clippers. Top-off is set for 7:30pm local time.