It's been a week since Luka Doncic injured his calf again. We now know that he will be absent for a month, at least. It would therefore not be surprising if the Mavericks are competing for the entirety of this first month of 2025 without their leader.
A challenge therefore, even if, since the start of the season, without the Slovenian, the Texans are holding up with 7 victories for 4 defeats. This is already good news.
“This number doesn’t really matter to me”, push aside yet Kyrie Irving. “I prefer to throw myself into battle with a healthy team, where everyone feels good, in good shape. But that’s how it is in this business. You have to be ready. »
PJ Washington goes along with the last two sentences of the Mavericks playmaker. “We are not professionals by chance. With or without Luka Doncic, we are supposed to win”he explains.
Lots of big matches to play
For this, the risk is to pull too much on the rope with Kyrie Irving. He accumulated 79 minutes against the Suns and Blazers, then, injured in the shoulder, did not play against the Kings. “We have to rely on our leader to help us but that doesn’t necessarily mean increasing his minutes to 40-42 per game”indicates Jason Kidd, who must try to find a balance, thinking above all about the long term.
But what do you do when you look at the Dallas calendar in January? We find duels against the Rockets, Cavaliers, Grizzlies, Lakers, twice the Thunder and the Nuggets, without forgetting matches against the Wolves and the Celtics! All this without Luka Doncic so…
“It’s an important part of the season, that’s for sure,” notes Kyrie Irving. “This is where teams start to rise or fall. They are building their identity for the playoffs. There are transfer rumors too. We, internally, feel good. We all just need to step it up a notch. Depending on how I feel, I'm going to need support and I'm going to need to support my teammates. »
