By james art PHOENIX — Jason Kidd entered his fourth season with the Mavericks with his most balanced roster since taking over in 2021. Now that the regular season is in full swing, Kidd’s rotation appears to be officially settled as well.
Kidd used a 10-man rotation in Thursday’s season opener that included Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, PJ Washington, Daniel Gafford, Derek Lively II, Naji Marshall, Jaden Hardy, Quentin Grimes and Maxie Kleber.
There were several questions during the preseason about the starting center spot, which could easily go to either Gafford or Lively due to their rim protection and lob threat abilities. The answer for now is Gafford. The backup point guard role was also uncertain, especially after Dante Exum suffered a right wrist injury during training camp. The injury was a blow to the Mavericks’ point guard depth, but they had two viable options in Hardy and veteran Spencer Dinwiddie. After Dallas’ season opener, it’s clear that Hardy has earned the job as the lead guard off the bench.
Kidd has enough NBA experience — as a coach and a player — to understand that rotations can change in an instant. His message to those currently out of the rotation is simple: be patient.
“As much as we can have a plan, the basketball gods can have another plan,” Kidd said after Friday’s practice. “Just to continue to be professional. Keep working. Everyone will get a chance to play this season.”
Kidd used a creative way to distribute the minutes in Thursday’s game. The first unit consisted of Doncic, Irving, Thompson, Washington and Gafford. The second unit features Hardy, Grimes, Marshall, Lively and sometimes Kleber.
Kidd’s rotation pattern in the first quarter looked like this: Doncic, Irving, Thompson, Washington and Gafford were the starters. Quentin Grimes was the first player off the bench and checked in for Irving five minutes into the game. Lively came on for Gafford at the 6:17 mark, which is routine for Kidd to use his primary big men in six-minute bursts. Marshall and Kleber were also included in the game. However, instead of immediately passing to Hardy, Kidd swung Irving for Doncic to close out the first quarter.
Hardy started the second quarter alongside Doncic and provided a significant boost on the Mavericks’ offensive end. He scored nine of his 11 points in the period and made three 3-pointers. His shooting presence helped stabilize the Mavericks offense, which was timely as it was his first game since signing a three-year extension with the Mavericks.
“I think he’s comfortable with his role,” Kidd said. “The ceiling and the sky are the limit for him. In terms of growth, you saw it here. In the last three years he has added something. He’s doing everything we’ve asked from both sides. With the new contract, I think he feels comfortable.”
Dinwiddie didn’t enter the game until 2:57, but the Mavericks had a 13-point lead by then. While Dinwiddie was the odd man out for Game 1, that doesn’t mean he won’t play an important role this season. Kidd used several examples from last season to show that there will be opportunities for those not currently in the rotation.
“When you look at Exum, he was third on the depth chart last year,” Kidd said. “Derrick Jones [Jr.] was the last one signed and they all started at some point and helped us win games. I think we can also go back to what we’ve done in the past to let the guys who are new here know they’re going to get a chance to play.”
Kidd also said Mavericks players currently on the bench will get a chance to play in the starting lineup due to unforeseen injuries or rest nights, which could go to the Mavericks trio of Doncic, Irving and Thompson.
“Guys will get an opportunity to start just because of health or rest,” Kidd said. “It’s just part of the nature of this business…The coaching staff has done a really good job of keeping guys ready.”
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