Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving told his teammates, “We’re fine,” despite trailing the Boston Celtics 2-0 in the NBA Finals.
“I’ve been saying this all year, ‘Failure is the best teacher at times. It can inspire you to do great things,’” Irving told reporters after Mavericks practice on Tuesday, per league-provided transcripts.
Irving said the Mavericks understand they are up against the team that had the best record in the regular season, the competitive nature of the Finals and the adjustments they need to make on the floor as players.
“The coaching staff is doing a great job of preparing us. But, it’s our job as players to make those adjustments and play even harder,” he said. “Especially when the game is getting a little out of balance, we have a lead and we want to extend it a little bit.”
The eight-time All-Star pointed out this group has never been in a Finals together and he is instilling confidence in his teammates.
“A lot of it is just a learning curve for myself, for my teammates,” Irving said. “Also, a peace of mind that we give each other that we want to give ourselves a chance by leaving it all out on the floor, playing our best preparing the best way we can.
“That’s literally been the focus since Game 2 ended, was putting our best foot forward, coming back home, feeling familiar, letting our game speak for itself.”
The Mavericks look to avoid going down 3-0 against the Celtics on Wednesday night when they host Boston at American Airlines Center for Game 3. Irving appeared to send a message to Celtics fans as he walked off the court Sunday night that he would see them again for Game 5.
