MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Perhaps one day the Mavericks and their fans won’t lament the decision of former general manager Donnie Nelson, front-office guru Bob Voulgaris and their executive corp’s decision to not scout or select TCU product Desmond Bane in the 2020 NBA draft.
But they sure rued the miss Saturday night in the Memphis Grizzlies’ FedExForum.
The Mavericks lost, 112-108, after Bane put Memphis ahead with 3:22 remaining and finished his 25-point night with a corner 3-pointer in front of Dallas’ bench with 1:01 left, burying the Mavericks’ hopes of stealing another victory without Luka Doncic or Kyrie Irving.
Standout production from their 2020 first-round pick Josh Green (21 points, 10 rebounds and four assists) and second-round rookie Jaden Hardy (22 points in 37 minutes) didn’t ease the Mavericks’ sting of losing for the eighth time in the last 11 games.
Their post-trade deadline stumble back to a .500 record (34-34) in the uber-close Western Conference playoff standings will continue to hurt, too.
Perhaps most painful of all: Facing Bane and the Grizzlies again Monday in Dallas with no clarity on whether Doncic or Irving will be back to help.
Apologies to those who bought tickets in FedExForum and looked forward to watching a superstar showdown with Doncic and Irving against Ja Morant and the trash-talking Grizzlies with Western Conference playoff standing in the balance.
The marquee draw never materialized.
Doncic exited the Mavericks’ Wednesday loss in New Orleans in the third quarter when the left thigh strain that hampered him for more than a week became too painful to push further. The team ruled him out for the trip to Memphis after practice Friday, and he remains “day to day,” Kidd said.
Viewers also knew Morant would not play Saturday — or Monday in Dallas — as he remains on leave from the Grizzlies after a string of controversial off-court incidents, including his Instagram livestream holding a gun last weekend.
Irving completed the 0 for 3 superstar strikeout a couple hours before tipoff.
The 30-year-old All-Star missed practice Friday and didn’t travel on the team’s flight to Memphis because he was excused to attend the funeral of Najee Seabrook, a 31-year-old Black man whom New Jersey police fatally shot while he experienced a mental health crisis on March 3.
Irving had donated $22,000 to a GoFundMe page to help pay for Seabrooks’ funeral expenses and said he wanted to offer his condolences in person to the family of Seabrooks, who lived in Paterson, N.J., about 10 miles from where Irving grew up.
The news weighed heavily on Irving, who decried police brutality against Black people during an hour-long livestream on Twitch earlier this week.
So did the soreness in his right foot that started after Irving lamented playing 41 minutes, including the full second half, Wednesday in New Orleans.
While the team listed Irving as questionable to play Saturday and he participated in shootaround, Kidd said the team’s medical staff opted to hold Irving out against the Grizzlies and plans to evaluate the soreness after returning home Sunday.
“The soreness is a concern,” Kidd said. “Hopefully he’s not out too long, but we’ll see.”
Irving, wearing a Jackie Robinson T-Shirt and knit, multicolored hat, watched from the end of the bench the superstar-less Mavericks failed to win their second game without either superstar available in the last five weeks.
