Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd was not feeling his jolliest self over the weekend. He turned sour when asked about the much-criticized decision to assign point guard duties to rookie Cooper Flagg and scolded reporters before cutting his media session short. Before his rant, he lambasted officials for swallowing their whistles on a Flagg drive to the basket in the final seconds of Saturday's 111-107 loss versus the Houston Rockets. The latter display earned Kidd a $35,000 fine. He addressed his incendiary comments on Tuesday.
Though, the Hall of Fame point guard does not sound too regretful. “I take full responsibility for my actions, my fine, but I said what I had to say,” Kidd shared, per ClutchPoints Mavs beat writer Joey Mistretta. “We have to move forward and get ready for the Celtics.”
He is right. The Mavericks do not have time to dwell in the past. They have dropped four straight games and are now three and a half games out of the final NBA Play-In Tournament slot. Kyrie Irving was already sidelined going into the new season and now Anthony Davis is nursing a hand injury, forcing the 19-year-old Flagg to assume the “top guy” role earlier than fans anticipated. Dallas' only chances of surviving the always formidable Western Conference is by staying focused.
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Although fans do not agree with all of his decisions, Jason Kidd has the team playing hard on a regular basis. The Mavs (19-30) lost their last two games by a combined six points and are constantly in tight contests. The head coach deserves credit for the scrappy identity this squad is displaying amid this rough campaign. But he is also expected to maintain his composure when speaking to the media.
It will be interesting to see how the Mavericks respond following the stinging Rockets loss and Kidd's subsequent remarks. Perhaps the extra fire will spur them to a big showing versus the Boston Celtics (31-18) on Tuesday night.