Jason Kidd on Mavericks falling below .500 - “Can we be healthy in time to make a stretch run? If we're not, that's just the season. Nobody's dying”
With their 104-88 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday, the Dallas Mavericks have fallen below .500 for the first time since December. The Mavericks are dealing with key injuries to stars Luka Doncic (thigh) and Kyrie Irving (foot) as well as big man Christian Wood (foot).
Now with just 13 games remaining this season, the team are in real danger of missing the playoffs. Mavs coach Jason Kidd still isn’t too concerned though, as he said postgame that the team just needs to get healthy to be successful:
“We’ve got to play with the cards we had tonight, and we played a good half of basketball with a young backcourt that’s learning how to play the NBA game,” Kidd said.
"We're getting better. It's just a matter — can we be healthy in time to make a stretch run? If we're not, that's just the season. Nobody's dying,” he added.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd when asked about the concern level he has now being one game below .500:
"We're getting better. It's just a matter — can we be healthy in time to make a stretch run? If we're not, that's just the season. Nobody's dying." https://t.co/5h2Y3J8ZUl
Dallas (34-35, eighth in the West) are still sitting in a play-in position in the Western Conference despite being below .500. However, the Mavs are only one game ahead of the 12th-placed Utah Jazz (33-36).
So they will likely need their stars back sooner rather than later if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Dallas Mavericks' remaining schedule
As for the Dallas Mavericks’ remaining schedule, it is working in their favor. Eight of the team’s final 13 games will come against teams below .500. This includes two games against Charlotte and two against San Antonio, as well as matchups with Indiana, Chicago, Atlanta and the LA Lakers.
So Dallas should still have a pretty good chance of securing at least a play-in spot assuming Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving are back soon. Both stars are listed as day-to-day with their respective injuries.
The Mavericks will next play on Wednesday versus San Antonio (17-50, 14th in the West).
Also read: “He could be back as soon as their next game”: Prominent NBA reporter says Luka Doncic could be back very soon as the Mavericks continue playoff push