Mavs Step Back: Luka's Frustration, Kidd's Coaching; Should Dallas Trade Hardaway?

Luka Doncic's Dallas Mavericks are in a rut, having lost three consecutive games, and there might not be an easy fix for their problems going forward.

Dalton Trigg | Jan 25, 2024

Mavs Step Back: Luka's Frustration, Kidd's Coaching; Should Dallas Trade Hardaway? /

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Dallas Mavericks

More than halfway through the NBA season, Dallas Mavericks have fallen on hard times, losing three consecutive games and five of their last seven.

The latest disappointing loss came with a 39-point swing against the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday, as the Mavs were up 46-30 early in the second quarter but ultimately lost 132-109. A visibly frustrated Luka Doncic finished with 34 points, eight rebounds, nine assists, one steal and two blocks, but it wasn't enough to overcome Devin Booker's efficient 46-point performance.

Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks, Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns — Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

On today's episode of the Mavs Step Back Podcast, we recap everything that happened in Dallas' loss to Phoenix, as well as some of the drama that happened afterwards in the postgame press conferences as well.

After three straight deflating losses where the team's energy and focus were severely lacking, the question must be asked: What's wrong with the Mavs? Is Doncic's thinning patience warranted, or does he need to have more composure? Is Jason Kidd's head coaching seat getting hotter? Is Tim Hardaway Jr. keeping Dallas from reaching its ceiling?

You can watch the entire episode below, and be sure to subscribe and leave your takes in the video comments!

Published Jan 25, 2024

DALTON TRIGG

Dalton Trigg is the Editor-In-Chief for Dallas Basketball, as well as the Executive Editor overseeing Inside The Rockets, Inside The Spurs, All Knicks, and The Magic Insider. He is the founder and host for the Mavs Step Back Podcast, which is a proud part of the Blue Wire podcast network. Trigg graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi’s College of Business and Economic Development with a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship in 2016. After spending a few years with multiple Dallas Mavericks-related blogs, including SB Nation’s Mavs Moneyball, Trigg joined DallasBasketball.com as a staff writer in 2018 and never looked back. At the start of 2022, he was promoted to the EIC title he holds now. Through the years, Trigg has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, Mavs GM Nico Harrison, now-retired legend Dirk Nowitzki and many other current/former players and team staffers. Many of those interviews and other articles by Trigg have been aggregated by other well-known sports media websites, such as Yahoo Sports, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report and others. You can find Trigg on all major social media channels, but his most prevalent platform is on Twitter. Whether it’s posting links to his DBcom work, live-tweeting Mavs games or merely giving his opinions on things going on with Dallas and the rest of the NBA, the daily content never stops rolling. For any inquiries, please email Dalton@MavsStepBack.com.