Mavericks' Jared Dudley gives Jason Kidd '80%' credit on Kyrie Irving after drama
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Mavericks superstar Kyrie Irving is no stranger to drama, having gone through troubled seasons with the Boston Celtics and the Brooklyn Nets. When the Nets’ Big 3 blew up, they traded Irving to the Mavericks, where he ultimately found a groove with co-star Luka Doncic. Both players led the team to their first trip to the NBA Finals since Dirk Nowitzki’s magical 2011 championship run, though they fell to the Celtics in five games. Asked about how Kyrie Irving settled in with the team, Mavericks assistant Jared Dudley credited head coach Jason Kidd for their success.
“You heard about Kyrie in the last couple places he’s been,” Dudley said via a report from Tim MacMahon for ESPN. “You haven’t heard one thing since he’s been in Dallas. Do you think that’s just Dallas, or do you think 80% has to do with Jason Kidd?”
The Mavericks find their groove
Moreover, Jared Dudley credited Jason Kidd’s Hall of Fame career as a former player for his success in coaching Kyrie Irving once he arrived at the Mavericks.
“I’m going to be honest with you, there’s only two or three coaches in the league that have the cachet and personality to be able to coach Luka and Kyrie at the same time and have no problems,” the assistant coach added.
Both Dudley and Kidd have won a championship with arguably the greatest player of all time in LeBron James and another future Hall of Famer Anthony Davis with the Los Angeles Lakers, so they’d know a thing or two about coaching or handling superstars in the locker room.
Likewise, Dudley has also earned praise from his teammates as a locker room guy who kept team chemistry together during the highs and lows of the season and the playoffs.
Meanwhile, Irving himself echoed the assistant coach’s opinions about Kidd.
“Outside of [Jason Kidd] being a Hall of Famer and being like a well-trusted, high-level-IQ thinker? He’s also being human enough to get to know what irks a player and what makes a player go in a positive manner,” the point guard said.
Irving played two seasons in Boston after requesting a trade from the Cavaliers, coming off three straight Finals appearances and the 2016 NBA championship.
After losing to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2019, Irving joined the Brooklyn Nets, eventually forming a Big 3 with Kevin Durant and James Harden, though they never made a Conference Finals in their years together.
Ultimately, Irving butted heads with Joe Tsai, owner of the Nets, leading to suspensions and even Nike dropping him as a partner. Finally, the Nets traded the disgruntled guard to the Dallas Mavericks.
Looking ahead
Pairing another ball-handler with Luka Doncic allowed both players to play freely, since Irving alleviated Doncic’s ball-stopping tendencies and gave him another teammate to trust with the ball.
With the addition of Klay Thompson, the Mavericks look to make another run in a slightly diminished but still stacked Western Conference.
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