Mavericks coach Jason Kidd is not setting a defensive goal

The Dallas Mavericks are changing things up under new head coach Jason Kidd. He has emphasized defense, chemistry, and accountability during training camp. Kidd noted on multiple occasions about the team’s defense needing to be better, and it starts with creating turnovers after being at the bottom in steals and deflections last season.

The Hall of Fame point guard doubled down on that point following practice on Oct. 11 as he added in rebounding as a key aspect. The Mavs want to create turnovers while limiting the opposition to one-shot this season. Kidd is changing the scheme and setting up Dallas to be more aggressive on both ends of the floor as they look to jump into title contention.

The Mavericks head coach had an interesting answer to a question about what goals he was setting for his team on defense this season. Let us take a closer look.

Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd is not setting defensive goals

Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com asked coach Kidd what he would consider to be improvement on defense. Fans can see Kidd’s response below.

"Let us be the team that has the most points. That’s just a joke. I think we were at the bottom defensively, so we want to be in the middle of the pack, but I think when you start setting standards, you got to first see what we have. To be able to answer that question fairly, give me around Christmas and I can tell you exactly where we are going to be."

It was an interesting answer from the new Mavericks head coach. He is focused on his team understanding the system and getting things down before he is attempting to set goals. The Mavs were 21st in defensive rating last season and still finished fifth in the Western Conference. Even an improvement to the middle of the pack could put Dallas into the top four in the difficult West.

Kidd is focused on seeing improvements in certain areas, and that is a positive. Players know what is expected of them, but they have more freedom too. Fans can listen to coach Kidd’s entire post-practice presser from Monday below.

The Dallas Mavericks defense will be something to watch all season long. Can they make improvements on that end of the floor? How is Kristaps Porzingis performing on the defensive end? Did the Mavs improve enough to jump into title contention? The team will answer all those questions, so stay tuned.