Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd addressed his team’s performance after a 116-110 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday at American Airlines Center. Kidd said defensive lapses and missed opportunities down the stretch were costly.
“Defensively we couldn’t get stops and then offensively down the stretch we were one for nine, had some good looks and also had some turnovers that led to them being able to capitalize,” Kidd said.
The coach praised his players’ composure despite the late-game swing. “I thought we were under control, I thought we were calm, understanding the situation, game of runs. We got looks that just didn’t go down for us,” he said.
Kidd noted the team struggled to maintain pace in the fourth quarter. “In the fourth we only had one assist and no fast break points. That’s something we have to be better at. That’s just the pace we’ve been playing at,” he explained.
The energy surrounding Luka Doncic’s return to Dallas did not appear to rattle the Mavericks. “I thought the group did a great job. Understanding that Luka is one of the best players in the world…they competed and put themselves in a position to win a close game,” Kidd said.
On Doncic’s performance, Kidd added, “He was Luka. He fills up the stat sheet. He was really good there in the first quarter and we tried to throw different things at him. He’s seen it all, but it was a Luka game.”
The coach also discussed the contributions of the second unit. “B-Will [Brandon Williams] led the second unit. I thought Klay was good in his minutes. PJ is trying to work the rust off, him and Gaff, and those two were good tonight,” Kidd said.
Dallas led earlier in the fourth after a strong third-quarter surge but could not hold off the Lakers’ late comeback. LeBron James scored 11 of his 17 points in the final period, while Rui Hachimura hit a four-point play and a 3-pointer to spark an 11-2 run that gave Los Angeles the lead.
Max Christie led the Mavericks with 24 points, and Naji Marshall added 21 points and 11 rebounds, but the team’s season-best four-game winning streak ended. Luka Doncic finished with 33 points and 11 assists, and the Lakers improved to 26-17.
Dallas falls to 19-26 and will travel to Milwaukee on Sunday, while Los Angeles begins the second half of an eight-game road swing in Chicago on Monday.
