Mavs' Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving Are 'Meant to Be Together,' Says HC Jason Kidd

Despite the struggles the Dallas Mavericks have faced over the second half of the season, head coach Jason Kidd remains hopeful that the team can retain point guard Kyrie Irving this offseason and keep him paired with star Luka Dončić.

"Those two are meant to be together," Kidd told reporters Thursday. "It just takes time."

Irving will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, and he is likely to explore his options. The Mavs own the 31-year-old's Bird rights and can offer him a max contract of $272 million over five years.

At 38-42, the Mavs sit in 11th place in the Western Conference and outside the play-in tournament because the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are also 38-42, own the 10th-place tiebreaker.

Dallas had acquired Irving from the Brooklyn Nets at this year's trade deadline in hopes of competing for a championship, and now the team might not even make the playoffs.

Through his 20 games with the Mavs, Irving has thrived offensively with averages of 27.0 points, 6.0 assists and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 51.0 percent from the field and 39.2 percent from three-point range. With him and Dončić, Dallas boasts arguably the most potent backcourt duo in the league.

However, the Mavs have struggled on the defensive end since Irving's arrival. The team has not held an opponent under 100 points since Jan. 26 and ranks 15th in the league with an average of 113.8 points allowed per game. It was just last season that Dallas ranked second in scoring defense at 104.7 points per game.

The Mavs should also be concerned with the mindset of Dončić, who admitted earlier this week that he doesn't feel the team is playing with confidence.

"I think you don't see that chemistry that we had before," he said after practice Tuesday. "I mean, especially last year. I think that chemistry was at the top with everybody, but you know, chemistry builds and not right away, so it's a long process."

For now, Dallas will try to keep its play-in hopes alive when it faces the Chicago Bulls (38-42) at home on Friday.