NEW ORLEANS – When he was scoring 16 consecutive points for the New Orleans Pelicans, C.J. McCollum reminded us all that the Mavericks aren’t the only team with players capable of big-time performances when clutch time rolls around.
While Kyrie Irving was doing his best to rally the Luka-less Mavericks in the fourth quarter Wednesday, it was McCollum that stepped up biggest and took down the Mavericks 113-106.
After the Mavericks had chipped away at a 19-point deficit to get within 97-94 with still nearly four minutes to play, McCollum took charge with his electric run that started with a midrange jumper and included three consecutive three-pointers and a drive to the hoop with 44.5 seconds left that put the game away at 110-103.
Would it have helped if Luka Dončić had been available? It certainly wouldn’t have hurt. He was out for all of the fourth quarter when a sore left thigh became to severe to play through. He is scheduled to get an MRI on Thursday.
But this was a game the Mavericks lost back in the second quarter when they fell behind 59-43, a deficit they would never fully make up.
“We talk about our offense being at a high caliber and I think we missed some of the easy ones that we normally make,” coach Jason Kidd said. “That affected our defensive effort there in the second. We really generated a lot of good looks. Again, we talked about it the last game. The first half we didn’t make threes in the previous game and then tonight we couldn’t make them either, so we just stopped playing defense and they took advantage of it.”
Usually in the NBA, when you stop playing defense, it means you stop winning, especially the closer to the playoffs you get.
Here’s a look at our takeaways from the loss that dropped the Mavericks to 34-33.
HOPING FOR THE BEST: The results of today’s MRI on the left leg of Dončić will be one of the most important medical moments of the season. You know his sore thigh must have been unbearable if he asked to come out of Wednesday’s game, which he did late in the third quarter. He clearly wasn’t himself. He finished with just 15 points and eight assists. He was 4-of-14 from the field and 1-of-5 from three-point land. The hope is that a couple days off before Saturday’s visit to Memphis will help ease the pain. But with the playoffs barely a month away, the Mavericks have to be prudent with their decisions pending what the MRI shows. The good news is that the medical staff they have is second to none in the NBA. And the Mavericks have always been good about keeping their eye on the big picture. Last year, they had to hold Luka out of three playoff games at the start of the Utah series in the first round. They found a way to win two of them and that started their run to the Western Conference finals. If Luka has to sit out for a spell, then it won’t be the end of the world. Like last year, it might be an opportunity for others to step up and make their mark.
ONE-HITTER NOT GOOD ENOUGH: As Kidd said, the Mavericks had to play perfect in the fourth quarter to pull out the win. They needed to throw a no-hitter down the stretch. That’s what a team faces when they dig a 19-point hole. And while the Mavericks’ rally was commendable, it only took one malfunction to sabotage the comeback. That came when Kyrie Irving, who was terrific in the fourth, couldn’t get a three-pointer to go down with 1:03 left, a shot that could have made it a 108-106 game. Instead, McCollum scored and it was a seven-point gap with 44.5 seconds left. But Irving, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Davis Bertans, who hit three three-pointers without which the Mavericks would have had no shot, all deserve credit. “I thought guys did an incredible job of getting us back in the game” Kidd said. “Dāvis (Bertāns) and (Jaden) Hardy gave us some life with some energy. Tim (Hardaway Jr.) played 40 minutes and Kyrie (Irving) played 40 minutes on a back-to-back. Those guys put us in a position to get back into the game. Unfortunately, we had to play perfect on both ends, defensively and offensively, and we just couldn’t do it.”
SPEAKING OF HARDY: The rookie had a really productive 17 minutes on the court, hitting four of five shots for 11 points to go with two assists. On the one three-pointer that he missed, the ball quickly found him again after an offensive rebound. He didn’t hesitate and knocked down the mulligan. “I was confident that next one was going in,” Hardy said. The athletic guard had not played in nearly two weeks, since the first game after the All-Star break. “Really it is just me staying ready and then wanting to come in and bring energy,” Hardy said. “I am always trying to help the team by playing within myself. I want to go out there and bring that spark and have a lot of energy.” Hardy credited the veteran teammates for keeping his spirits up and keeping him “confident and staying in the gym. They told me to believe in my reps and whenever my name gets called, I’m ready.”
Twitter: @ESefko
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