Dallas Mavs Hot Reactions: Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving ‘Big Easy’ Win; Josh Green Bounce Back & More
NEW ORLEANS – The Dallas Mavericks came into New Orleans and got themselves a 'Big Easy' win on Sunday night, dismantling the Pelicans in a 136-124 game that wasn't nearly that close.
Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving did their thing, scoring a combined 65 points on 24-38 shooting overall (63.2 percent). The Mavs, who only trail the Indiana Pacers by 0.2 for best offensive rating in the league, were simply too much for the Pelicans, and led by as much as 29 points in the fourth quarter – one that Doncic spent restfully watching from the bench.
On the latest episode of the Mavs Step Back Podcast, we recap the Mavs' win that pushed their record to 8-2, which is good for second in the Western Conference. The Denver Nuggets are also 8-2 on the young season, but the Mavs are currently losing that tiebreaker due to their loss in Denver on Nov. 3.
When Doncic and Irving are scoring a lot of points efficiently, the Mavs are going to be hard to beat no matter who they're playing, but the fact that the star duo has found a way to get theirs while also putting up incredible assist totals speaks to how well this roster is gelling in the early stages of the season. Dallas is playing "unselfish basketball," and they don't plan on changing that strategy anytime soon.
"I think we're playing unselfish basketball," Doncic said. "We're just sharing the ball. We knew they would have the low-man early there, so there were a lot of corner 3s for us. We got them up, 53 [3-point attempts]. Not all of them, but most of them were really good shots. That's what we have to do [going forward]."
Other topics discussed in this episode include Josh Green breaking out of his slump to score 13 points off the bench while also playing some tenacious defense, as well as rookie starting center Dereck Lively II holding his own going against a bigger and seasoned frontcourt of Zion Williamson and Jonas Valanciunas.
You can watch and listen to the full segment below, and be sure to subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and anywhere else you get your podcasts! You can also leave us a review on Apple Podcasts for a chance to win future giveaways.