"Sometimes it felt like therapy": Kyrie Irving says meetings with J-Kidd helped Mavericks establish identity 

Kyrie Irving had a field day in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals as the Dallas Mavericks pipped the Minnesota Timberwolves, 108-105 at Target Center. The mercurial guard later credited head coach Jason Kidd for helping him and the Mavericks establish their identity.

Speaking to the "Inside the NBA" crew, the 32-year-old spoke about how Dallas has managed to stay motivated en route to a deep playoff run after getting past the LA Clippers and the OKC Thunder in the first two rounds of the 2024 NBA playoffs.

Speaking to the panel comprising Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley, Draymond Green, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson, Irving shared his thoughts on how the Mavs bounced back and what Kidd's influence was:

"You get motivation from failure and you get inspired... I wanted to make sure we felt good as a team after every single game. We had a lot of long meetings with J-Kidd, sometimes it felt like therapy."

Irving ended his evening with 30 points, five rebounds and four assists. Luka Doncic had 33 points, six rebounds and eight assists as the Mavs blew past the Timberwolves. For the hosts, Jaden McDaniels led with 24 points, while Anthony Edwards ended with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

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Kyrie Irving takes to social media to celebrate Mavs Game 1 win

Soon after the game, "KAI" took to social media to celebrate the Game 1 win, and he kept it simple. He addressed his tribe and added a string of emojis:

Tribe🤞🏾♾🪶❤️"

The post has well over 200k+ views and 13k likes along with 500+ comments. On the season front, Irving has proved to be the ideal foil for Doncic. In the playoffs, he is averaging 21.8 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.3 steals per contest, shooting 48.6% from the field and 42.3% from 3-point range in 13 playoff games.

Both teams meet for Game 2 of the series on Friday at Target Center. Whoever wins the series will advance to the NBA Finals and square off against either the Boston Celtics or Indiana Pacers. The Celtics lead the Pacers 1-0 after winning Game 1 at TD Garden.

As for Kyrie Irving, this will be an opportunity to win his second NBA championship, after last winning it with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016.