After parting ways with Luka Doncic last season, the Dallas Mavericks became the most intriguing team to look at. Adding the No. 1 draft pick, Cooper Flagg, solidified the notion. Thus, turning every head towards Texas. Because, let’s face it, without Kyrie Irving, everyone knew Jason Kidd would put out a laboratory to brew experiments. He did. Throwing the 18-year-old rookie in Kai’s position: point guard. Three games in, and Dallas is in trouble. Two consecutive losses and “Fire Nico” chants making a comeback? But come Sunday, Kidd’s doubtful rotation, D’Angelo Russell put the league on notice.

Dallas acquired D’Lo from the Brooklyn Nets as soon as he became a free agent this offseason. The team brought in the 2015 No. 2 overall draft pick to fill Kyrie Irving’s void. However, D’Lo is coming off the bench, with Cooper and “undrafted two-way player” Ryan Nembhard seeing more playing time, as Tim MacMahon noted on the latest episode of the Hoop Collective podcast. Interestingly, Sunday night proved to be a key moment for Coach Kidd and his staff.

Russell went 0-for-7 from the field initially. But after hitting a buzzer-beating three-pointer midway through the second quarter, he regained his rhythm. “He’s making things happen. He ended up having 24 and six off the bench, and for a team that is just starved for creation and shooting, I think it’s hard not to play the guy,” MacMahon said.

Now, D’Lo hasn’t been the most efficient guard on the team, and one might also understand why Jason Kidd might’ve been skeptical about playing him. “But you don’t have a whole lot of guards on this roster who are available, and certainly, you don’t have a guard in the starting lineup,” the ESPN analyst added.

Meanwhile, Tim Bontemps chipped in. He said, “We’ve talked about that…the Cooper Flagg experiment at point guard is what they should be doing for the long term. But to not play him, given their lack of creation, doesn’t make any sense.”

Bontemps noted that it’s acceptable to bench D’Lo when he’s not performing, but he has the ability to ignite his game on specific nights. With the Mavericks’ lack of strong perimeter shooting, it’s crucial to keep him in the rotation during those hot stretches.

Bontemps further emphasized, “They don’t have a lot of shot creation really on the team. So he probably should be a six-man guard anyway. Have him come in and do that, and he’ll be able to win them a few games this year by doing what he did tonight. It won’t be the only time that he does it. He was very good in that game.”

Given D’Angelo Russell’s big night at AAC, the Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd also couldn’t keep his eyes off D’Lo. He indeed played a big role in the Mavs’ 139-129 win against the Toronto Raptors. Thus, speaking with the media after the game, the coach made his feelings clear.

Coach Kidd gave his verdict on D’Angelo Russell’s contribution in Dallas’ win

What did Jason Kidd get from D’Angelo Russell on Sunday? “I think at his best being able to playmake, score, and then find guys. I thought he did a great job not just on the offensive end, but also on the defensive end,” the coach told the media.

D’Lo turned chaos into control as the Mavericks stormed past the Raptors 139-129. After missing his first seven shots, he caught fire with a buzzer-beating three that changed the night for them. From there, he piled up 24 points on 8-of-18 shooting, including 2-of-7 from deep and 6-of-8 from the line, adding five rebounds, six assists, and three steals. By the end, his spark, swagger, and shot-making sealed Dallas’ win, and possibly his spot in Kidd’s trust circle.

Thus, D’Angelo Russell walked into the storm and left it singing his tune. The boos turned to cheers, and the doubts melted into applause. Jason Kidd’s experiment finally sparked life, and Dallas found rhythm in the chaos.

The message was loud: give the man the ball, and he’ll write his own story. If this was a glimpse of what’s ahead, the Mavs may have just unlocked a beautiful kind of madness.