“Defensively, they’re one of the best teams in the league. » When analyzing the Wolves, Jason Kidd delivers a well-known truth. THE Mavericks know that they will face a big defense, already visible in the regular season (the best even), then which was confirmed against the Nuggets (97.6 points conceded) in the conference semi-final.
With in particular a particular dimension: the size and stature of the Minnesota players, which are much greater than those of the Thunder, which does not have such athletes.
“They are long”, notes the Mavericks coach. “If we go to the circle, we know that Rudy Gobert will be there. Anthony Edwards is good on both ends of the floor. And with Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns and Jaden McDaniels, this is a big team. Mike Conley is the smallest player on the floor, but he's not small. »
We can add Naz Reid, whom the Texan coach has not forgotten. “He causes problems for everyone. He's one of the best players in the league. He goes under the radar but he does his job at a very high level”.
Taking Rudy Gobert out of the racket
The symbol of this size, of this defense, is obviously Rudy Gobert. The four-time defender of the year is the Wolves' goalkeeper. “Its timing, its positioning, its scale”lists Derek Lively II when he talks about the qualities of the Frenchman.
The Mavericks will therefore have a simple mission (like in the first round in 2022 against the Jazz): take it out of its usual zone of influence to better get around this wall.
“We'll see if we can take him to other places on the field. But 90% of the time he is in front of the basket,” says Jason Kidd. “So we have to find a way to keep him out of the circle, to give our scorers space, so they can go to the basket. We will try to move it. Sometimes he does two takes so we have to be alert. »
Before going to the basket, Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving will already have to get rid of the marking from the outside, in particular from Jaden McDaniels. “He’s one of the best defenders. Doncic and Irving go from Lu Dort to McDaniels, so it doesn't get any easier,” regrets Jason Kidd. “We're going to have to find a way to give our players shots when McDaniels isn't on them. »
