Kyrie Irving's intense two-word command shows type of leader he is for Mavs

On Friday night, the Dallas Mavericks were in an intense back-and-forth game with the Golden State Warriors.

The Mavs had lost to them earlier in the week and needed a win badly. The playoff race is extremely close, and winning out will keep Dallas out of the Play-In Tournament. Every game matters at this point of the year, and P.J. Washington made a huge play down the stretch that sealed the win.

Tim Hardaway Jr. drove to the basket and found Washington on the other side of the lane for a layup to give the Mavs a two-point lead with under five seconds remaining. After this play, Kyrie Irving told all of his teammates a two-word statement that shows the type of leader he is for this team.

Kyrie Irving's command: 'One stop!' illustrates his leadership for Mavericks

"One stop! One stop! One stop," Irving said to his teammates as they celebrated Washington's clutch bucket.

Washington's bucket was crucial, and the American Airlines Center was rocking, but Irving made sure to remind his teammates that the job wasn't finished yet. The Warriors still had a chance to win the game in the final 4.5 seconds, and Irving made sure to help get his teammates locked in on the task at hand.

This may seem like something little, but Irving's leadership is something that hasn't been talked about enough this year. During the Mavs' 1-5 slump just over a month ago, Irving remained confident that everything was going to be alright, and this rubbed off on his teammates as they quickly got back on track.

He has only been in Dallas for a little over a year, and he is someone who his teammates look up to late in the games. Before the season, Irving said that he is "here (in Dallas) to lead these guys in a different way they haven’t been led before." He was clearly locked in on being a leader here, and nothing has changed since.

Both Luka Doncic and Irving have taken big strides as leaders this season, and Irving's ability to help keep his teammates fully concentrated on the next defensive possession during a time of adversity shows that he has what it takes to be an elite leader. Doncic was out for this game with knee soreness and Irving led the squad to a tough 108-106 victory over the Warriors.

Irving and potentially Doncic's next game is later today against the Houston Rockets.

For all the latest on Kyrie Irving, Luka Doncic, and the Dallas Mavericks' pursuit of an NBA title this season, stay tuned.