Slaps Mavs with harsh Luka Doncic reality after 26-point loss to Nuggets

Jason Kidd slaps Mavs with harsh Luka Doncic reality after 26-point loss to Nuggets © Provided by ClutchPoints

Story by Ryan Bologna

The Dallas Mavericks suffered a 130-106 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Monday, and head coach Jason Kidd spoke about what the team needs to improve on after the loss.

“We’ve got to be better defensively if we’re not scoring,” Jason Kidd said, via Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. “So this is two games as a coach I’ve got to be better. The big thing is our defense has to be better; we just can’t rely on Luka to have 40 and bail us out.”

It would have been a tall task for the Mavericks to win against the Nuggets on Monday, as they were without both Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II. Both Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II were in walking boots.

Luka Doncic did play, but he was feeling sick. Luka Doncic produced and put up 38 points with 11 rebounds and eight assists, but the performance from the rest of the team was not enough, as Kidd emphasized.

The Mavericks dropped to 16-10 on the season with the loss to the Nuggets, and it will be worth monitoring the injuries to Irving and Lively ahead of Wednesday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers, who are on a hot streak after gelling with James Harden in the fold.

A win on Wednesday against the Clippers would be a nice bounce back against arguably the hottest team in the NBA. As Kidd said, the team has to be better defensively, especially if Irving and Lively are not going to be on the floor