As Jason Kidd said before the dust settled from Kyrie Irving’s outrageous game-winner on Sunday, “Playoff basketball has arrived a little early.”
And the Mavericks showed they are ready for it, which is our primary takeaway from the 107-105 victory.
Consider what happened before Irving’s off-hand shot from 21 feet nestled into the net at the buzzer against the defending champion Denver Nuggets.
The Mavericks shot just 9-of-35 (25.7 percent) from three-point range. In other words, it’s the kind of game that they would not have won two months ago.