Mavs Fall Short After Suns' Kevin Durant Pulls Off Clutch Heroics: 3 Big Takeaways

Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving both scored over 30 points, but it wasn't enough to lead the Dallas Mavericks against Kevin Durant's and Devin Booker's Phoenix Suns.

DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks came up short 130-126 against the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. It was the first matchup between Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant since their respective Brooklyn Nets trades. It was also a continuation of the on-court flare ups between Luka Doncic and Devin Booker. 

The Mavs led by eight points with 1:58 remaining in the third quarter, but without Irving on the court, the team managed to squander their advantage before the period even ended. A pull-up jumper from Booker with 25.2 seconds remaining pushed the Suns ahead ahead of the fourth quarter.

Despite all of the circumstances, the Mavs still had a chance to tie the game with under 20 seconds remaining in regulation. The Suns took a two-point lead with 12.8 seconds left, thanks to a pull-up jumper from Kevin Durant, but Doncic missed a point-blank finish in uncharacteristic fashion on the next play. 

Here are three big takeaways from the Mavs' loss to the Suns:

3. Non-Luka Lineup Show Progress

For as much focus as there is on what the Mavs achieve with Doncic and Irving on the court together, there is a real process that goes into building continuity as a team at large. Among the important elements of that is how the team performs when Irving is the only superstar on the court as he runs the bench unit. 

In the Mavs' recent outings, there were some substantial runs given up early in the fourth quarter while Doncic was on the sideline. With Tim Hardaway Jr. converting from deep and Christian Wood's scoring and versatility, Irving led the unit with an unselfish approach that translated to positive results. 

"Just not losing the leads, or kind of coming in and not having a team-first mentality," Irving said. "Guys are coming off the bench and want to come in and show their talent, obviously put points on the board. But I think we're just easing into and just knowing that if we continue to play at a high pace, everybody's going to get their shots." 

Irving explained: "Just continuing to have that next-play mentality. If you don't get it that one play, do something for your teammate in order to get him a better shot or put yourself in position. It's just one of those times throughout the season, especially where we are after the trade, where our units are figuring each other out. And when we do, we'll be good."

While a lot of focus is placed on discussing "fit" with Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic, I asked Irving about how the lineups are progressing when he leads the Mavericks' bench group:

"Just not losing the leads, or kind of coming in and not having a team-first mentality. Guys are… pic.twitter.com/gaBi2Jjb2Y

— Grant Afseth (@GrantAfseth) March 6, 2023

One of the major issues the Mavs have tried to solve for over the years has been to not lose non-Luka minutes. With Irving to set the tone, there is real potential to actually solve for those problems. 

2. Luka Doncic Underwhelmed; Kyrie Irving Continued Strong Play

While it hasn't been listed on the injury report, Doncic had been noticeably bothered by some sort of issue with is quad. He played 35 minutes and finished with 34 points, nine rebounds, and four assists, but he totaled five turnovers, while shooting 8-23 from the floor and 1-9 from 3-point range. 

Before the game, Doncic did not take part in his usual pre-game on-court workout. Every player tends to be scheduled for a time and he didn't take the floor as usual.

"I've been dealing with that [since] last week," Doncic said after Sunday's game. "Today was the worst. But you know, I just try to keep going."

In terms of impact on performance, Doncic explained that it impacts him when he attempts to shoot the basketball, or to jump since the leg that's bothering him feels "a little weaker." Regardless, he feels as though it's not significantly impacting him.

"When I try to shoot or jump, I feel like this leg is a little weaker. ... Pain-wise, it's a little bit, but it's not too bad."

Doncic had a point blank finish attempt with a chance to tie Sunday's game after Kevin Durant converted a 14-foot pull-up jumper with 12.1 seconds left to go. Doncic made clear that he simply missed the shot and didn't point to the injury as the cause.

 "I thought it was in, but I just missed it," Doncic said. "One of my friends texted me 'I would even make that.'"

Irving had a storng performance as he scored 30 points on 10-19 shooting from the floor and was 3-8 from 3-point range. He added four rebounds and seven assists. His pull-up jumper was dropping at a high clip, he got to the rim effectively against bigger matchups, and he was instrumental in settling the game down at key points.

1. Mavs Have No Answer For Durant & Booker; Defense Remains Problematic

One of the key limitations of the Mavs' roster is the lack of size at many starting spots. There is a smaller defender attempting to contain Kevin Durant and Deandre Ayton at all times, while it isn't much better with Devin Booker either. 

It was often too easy for Durant or Booker to turn the corner when attacking. If they didn't get to the rim, they were frequently raising up inside the 3-point line for pull-ups and shooting over the top with accuracy. They're too big and talented for the perimeter defenders the Mavs deploy. 

The Mavs tried to survive the matchup by having Doncic "guard" Josh Okogie, an underwhelming perimeter shooter, often stationed in the weak-side corner. The Mavs dared him to shoot and he went 0-8 from deep. Phoenix gave Torrey Craig a try and he went 1-4. Ish Wainwright stepped in and shot 4-5, breaking the game open.

The Mavs lack the necessary interior presence to funnel lane penetration to since Dwight Powell is not a rim protector. It's too easy for Durant, in particular, to use his size at the point of attack, get downhill deep into the paint, and just shoot over the top of Powell. No matter how technically sound or how hard he plays, Powell is not a starter or closer in the NBA. 

"It puts pressure on every possession because the mid-range shot is one of the easiest shots in basketball. Not everybody can take it or be highly efficient at it, but it's one of the easiest shots — the closer you get to the basket, the percentage is supposed to go up," Irving said. "When you get to your spots and everything you've worked on, it makes the game a lot easier, but also us as a defense, we just want to make guys get uncomfortable. I think we did that a few times tonight. 

Irving explained: "They got to the free throw line a few times tonight, but again, we just got to tip our hat to them to keep playing. The ball found a few people on those double teams that we wanted to and just got to live with the results."

Suns' Kevin Durant and Devin Booker are two high-level short-range scorers that put pressure on the Mavericks' defense. I asked Kyrie Irving about that part of the game from a defense's perspective:

"It puts pressure on every possession because the mid-range shot is one of the… pic.twitter.com/0roG5vu4FB

— Grant Afseth (@GrantAfseth) March 6, 2023

The consistent problem the Mavs' defense faced in solving for the short-range shot creation of the Suns' superstars continued on the game's most pivotal play. With # seconds remaining in regulation, the Suns' victory began to be sealed when Durant evaded a double team before converting a pull-up jumper. 

“I thought that’s what KD [Kevin Durant] does. He went away from the double team, and when he rises, he’s longer than 7 feet, and he got to his spot. The beginning of the possession, we got the ball out of his hands, and then he got it back, and we were chasing. And so just understanding he got a good look, and then we come down and get a good look. It just didn’t fall for us this afternoon.”

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