Kyrie Irving's dialed-in mindset gives Mavericks fans hope team can still win Finals

History is not on the Dallas Mavericks' side in the 2024 Finals. Is it impossible to recover from a 3-0 deficit? Not at all, even if no one in the NBA has done it. It will take a miracle, though, for the team to mount a successful comeback, especially because the Boston Celtics' star power has proven difficult to conquer.

The Mavs were supposed to have an advantage over their opponents, as they have arguably one of the most potent offensive duos in league history. However, Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving have had their struggles in the series.

It has also become apparent that Dallas' biggest need is another reliable scorer to complement the Luka-Kyrie tandem. It's tough to win when five Celtics players have outscored the Mavs' third-leading scorer, P.J. Washington.

Kyrie Irving's dialed-in mindset gives Mavericks fans hope team can still win Finals

Despite the historically insurmountable hole Dallas has found itself in, not all hope is lost for the franchise. Doncic has offered a confident message for his squad, expressing optimism that "it's not over until it's over."

Irving also seems to be in high spirits. Asked by Jared Greenberg his thoughts about the narrative that he and Doncic might be the greatest scoring backcourt of all time and what they need to do to get back at that level in the Finals, the eight-time All-Star said that while the compliments are flattering, he is more focused on helping the team win and prepare for an opponent as formidable as the Celtics.

Interestingly, Irving also said that at the time when all the hoopla about him and his superstar teammate was going on, it would take some time before they would be "able to do this at the highest level." So, maybe there's another gear that he and Doncic can get to. Whether that takes place in the current playoffs or the future remains to be seen.

The former champion has already displayed the ability to step it up after nearly leading Dallas to a 21-point comeback victory in the fourth quarter of the third meeting.

Following two straight poor games, Irving made up for it with a 35-point outing (the highest-scoring performance from any player in this round) on Wednesday. Sadly, it wasn't enough to deliver to give them the win.

It might be too premature, but the Mavs might have to start thinking about how to come back stronger next season. Fortunately, there are lessons to be learned from their losses to Boston, including ways to maximize the Doncic-Irving partnership against opponents with several shot-creators and switchable players on defense.

However, Dallas fans should continue to hold out hope in the 2024 Finals because history has also shown that it's unwise to write off the Mavs stars.

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