DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks defeated the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night, winning by a final score of 111-103. Kyrie Irving and PJ Washington led the Mavs, while Max Christie enjoyed another strong performance. However, Irving admitted that he was “pissed” at Christie before the game.
“Max beat me (to the arena) today… I was pissed, I was pissed,” Irving told reporters after the game in a joking manner. “I was happy to see him but at the same time… I gave him a side eye, ‘you did this on purpose to motivate me.’ I thought I left my house pretty early today, then he’s over here just sitting in his chair already, reading. That’s just the testament of being a true professional and having fun at your craft.”
Of course, Irving was joking and was likely proud of the 22-year-old.
So how often do teammates beat Kyrie Irving to the arena?
“Not often,” the Mavs star said. “Not often.”
What did Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd think about Christie beating Irving to the arena?
“Yeah, Kai must have got stuck in traffic,” Kidd said with a smile on his face. “He shared that with me when he got to work today, that Christie beat him. I said look, ‘you must have drove the slow car or you got caught in traffic.’ But also, it’s a great example of what time to come to work. Christie set the mark so I can only imagine that Kai will spend the night next time here to make sure that he beats him.”
Max Christie is making a big impact alongside Kyrie Irving and his Mavs teammates. The guard is averaging 17.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.1 steals per outing in seven games with Dallas up to this point.
Kidd was impressed by Christie’s willingness to join Irving and show up to the arena early.
“Christie, we’re all learning who he is,” Kidd continued. “That just shows, coming off break, coming to work early, trying to get a rhythm and he beat Kai. Kai is normally here by two, two-thirty before anybody else so it’s kind of cool to see someone else join the party to come early to work.”
The Mavericks’ next game is scheduled for 3:30 PM EST on the road against the Golden State Warriors.