Mavericks are ‘impressed by Kyrie Irving’s professionalism and locker room presence’,  

The Mavericks are said to be impressed with the way newly acquired superstar point guard Kyrie Irving since arriving in Dallas, despite the black cloud currently hanging over their season.

As reported by ESPN’s Tim MacMahon on Saturday, there has ‘only been praise about his professionalism and locker room presence during his brief time in Dallas. Blaming Luka Doncic’s frustration on Irving isn’t fair or accurate.’

Dallas lost the second of two consecutive games against the struggling Charlotte Hornets, which has sent the panic level from Defcon level four to Defcon level 5. 

The Mavericks’ recent subpar play while in the midst of the Western Conference’s thick playoff battle made game feel like a must-win, causing star player Luka Doncic to voice his frustration during the post-game press conference.

‘It’s really frustrating. I think you can see it with me on the court. Sometimes, I don’t feel it’s me, just being out there,’ Doncic said.

The Mavericks are impressed with Kyrie Irving’s ‘professionalism and locker room presence’

News of the feelings for Irving within the organization dispelled the speculation Luka Doncic is frustrated with Irving due to the team’s recent run of subpar performances

The fact that the Mavericks are 6-9 when Irving has played since the trade that brought him to Dallas, along with recent sentiment amongst both those on social and an overwhelming portion of the general media to paint Irving as a villain led to quick speculation that Doncic aimed his comments at the newly-acquired eight-time All-Star.

Irving is averaging 27.6 points and 6.1 assists per game, along with shooting 50.4 percent from the field since joining the Mavericks, although for reasons out of his control that production has not translated to wins.

Mavericks coach Jason Kidd also commented on the team’s performance after the game.

‘When you look at the start of both games, we weren’t very good. Again talking about what happened, we looked at the video pre-game and we also talked about what we needed to do, and, unfortunately,’ said Kidd. ‘We just didn’t do that in that first quarter, and also probably the first half.’ 

Mavericks’ coach Jason Kidd blasted his team’s performance while speaking to the media

‘Just like last game, we talked about it at halftime and I thought the effort was extremely high on the defensive end.

‘Offensively, all night, we got great looks and we didn’t put the ball in the basket — wide open 3s, some missed layups that we normally make, but that’s part of the game. I thought the energy level was extremely high in the second half.’

Dallas’s record fell to 36-39 for the season following their most recent defeat, which also saw them fall to 11th in the west.