Jaden Hardy's Summer League Mavs Overcome 18-Point Deficit in Win vs. Sixers

Jaden Hardy and the Mavs' Summer League team overcame an 18-point deficit against the Sixers to achieve their first win in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS — In the Dallas Mavericks' second Summer League outing, they overcame an 18-point deficit to win 111-103 against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night. The Mavs improved to 1-1 in Las Vegas, bouncing back from a weekend loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder. 

Aside from an early, brief five-point lead at the 8:44 mark of the first quarter, the Mavs the remainder of the game trailing without managing to go on a run to get back into the mix until later in the second half. The Sixers led by as many as 18 points at one point. 

The Mavs continued to struggle offensively early on, just as they did in their Summer League opener. The team was unable to create advantages out of screening actions in the half-court, with more utilization of Stack pick-and-roll and guard-to-guard screens early. There was a need to clean things up at halftime, and Dallas did just that. 

Jaden Hardy and the Mavs' first-round picks from this year's draft — Dereck Lively II and Olivier-Maxence Prosper — struggled to make an impact in the first half. Shots were not falling for Hardy, Lively was picking up fouls, and Prosper went without a recorded statistic for quite some time. 

"Let's just start with Hardy. I thought he played terribly [in the] first half,' Dudley said. "He wasn't listening to the play calls, dropping his head, going too fast, turning the ball over. [Shammgod] had a good halftime speech. I came in to follow him. Talking to him was slowing down, making the right reads [and] that we were going to score enough points. I believe we had 49 [points] at [the] half."

It was a different story after the break, but momentum didn't go in the Mavs' favor until the fourth quarter. The Mavs cut the deficit within single-digits early in the final period as Hardy heated up with small ball personnel on the floor. 

As they continued to chip away at the Sixers' lead, they made it a two-point game midway through the period using a 19-4 run. Dallas continued to stay steady to take a two-point lead with 3:49 remaining in the period. 

With Lively and Prosper on the floor in clutch time, the Mavs managed to receive timely plays to maintain their narrow lead. Prosper nearly converted an and-one with a little over a minute remaining, giving Dallas a five-point lead. Lively came up with a few pivotal rebounds after to secure possession. 

"Let's shout out Dereck Lively as a rookie," Dudley said. "No shootaround [and] only one practice, one game. Minutes go up. If you saw me, I didn't want to take him out. Those last two, it was at 21, 22, I think I went over the total, but fans will be happy."

Hardy finished with 24 points, five rebounds, and five assists. The team received eight points and 11 rebounds from Lively, while Prosper contributed 10 points and seven rebounds with one steal and one block. Other double-figure scorers, included McKinley Wright IV (13), Taze Moore (13), and Mike Miles Jr. (10). 

Dudley, who was coaching on his birthday, was happy to get his first coaching victory in Summer League. 

"I'm just humbled and honored to have the opportunity to coach Summer League," Dudley said. "This is what, it's my second year. Get my first coaching league to get my first win on my birthday."

The Mavs' next Summer League matchup is against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday. 

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Grant Afseth is a Dallas Mavericks reporter for DallasBasketball.com and an NBA reporter for NBA Analysis Network. He previously covered the Indiana Pacers and NBA for CNHI's Kokomo Tribune and various NBA teams for USA TODAY Sports Media Group. Follow him on Twitter (@grantafseth), Facebook (@grantgafseth), and YouTube (@grantafseth).

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