NBA Summer League | Mavs end off 4-1

[Jannemann2]

Is it concerning that the team looked way better without Hardy?

I don't think so. We've heard at the beginning that it was "all about Hardy" which might have been for testing the pressure on him as much as taking it away from the other guys.

However we saw Hardy a bit overwhelmed with leading the team and getting buckets and trying to be active on defense and also doing some point-guard duty. But with the directive of him being "the man", both, Hardy and the rest of the team, may still have operated under the idea, that Hardy should be force-fed which didn't yield perfect results. Hardy still got his points, and I think he will fulfill that role just fine with the big team (might still be a step behind an experienced guy like Tim Hardaway Jr., like it or not :-)).

With Hardy being out, the other guys were probably more free and could adopt more to the flow of the game, and play towards the strength of the hot guys of the day.