The Dallas Mavericks bounced back with a win over the LA Clippers after losing the first of their two games against them.
Dallas Mavericks fans will feel their previous loss against the Clippers should have an asterisk against it, they were missing both Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.
Doncic sat out the second game against the Clippers too. The good news was Kyrie Irving made his return.
The Mavs won this game 113-97, having lost the previous game 97-118.
Kyrie Irving only scored 15 points, yet listening to teammate Quentin Grimes after the game, you can see his presence makes such a big difference to the players.
Grimes told a press conference that Irving gives confidence to his teammates, on and off the court.
He explained: “He’s definitely like the leader of our locker room, for sure. He’s been the most vocal, for sure, all the time, even in good games, bad games.
“He’s the most vocal in all those time outs, days when we come in, he’s been very vocal for us. He’s been a really huge impact on all of us.
“Just having a guy like that out there who just kind of controls the whole game, kind of makes it easy for for us to go out there and just knock down shots and be aggressive.”
Irving added six assists and three rebounds in addition to his 15 points.
Grimes, coming off the bench, led the team with 20 points, in a game where eight different Mavs players scored into double figures.
Kyrie Irving had a difficult time on the Brooklyn Nets before his trade to the Mavs in February 2023.
He has been praised for the way he has re-adjusted in Dallas, and he is using his experience to help the Mavs’ young stars.
The Mavs lost the NBA finals last year against the Celtics, and they will be looking to go one better this season.
Currently ranking fourth in the Western Conference with a 18-10 record, the Mavs are well positioned for another post-season run, and hope to shortly welcome Luka Doncic back.
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