Mavericks guard Felton stays positive despite difficult season

This has been a trying season for Raymond Felton, in more ways than one.

It all started Oct. 18 when Felton suffered a sprained left ankle during a preseason game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. It was the Mavs’ second preseason game, and Felton — in his first season with Dallas — hadn’t yet become accustomed to playing with his new teammates.

The injury cost Felton 31 games. By then, Jameer Nelson had become the Mavs’ starting point guard, and Devin Harris and J. J. Barea were entrenched as the backups.

And even when Nelson was traded to Boston for Rajon Rondo on Dec. 18, Felton was still out with that nasty injury. By the time Felton finally got into his first regular season game Dec. 28, Rondo had already been thrust into the starting lineup.

“It’s been a rough year, man, especially getting hurt and coming back, and it’s hard to get in the rotation,” Felton said. “Taking nothing from these guys that are in front of me — these guys are good players as well in this league.

“It’s just an unfortunate situation for me. I got hurt, the rotation was set, the team was playing well, it’s kind of hard to get yourself back into the rotation when it’s like that.”

Thanks to Harris’ illness and Barea’s sprained left ankle, Felton played five inspiring minutes during Sunday’s 98-92 loss at Phoenix, contributing three points and a whole lot of hustle.

That led to coach Rick Carlisle giving Felton eight minutes during Tuesday’s 101-94 win over the San Antonio Spurs, and he responded with two points, two rebounds and even more hustle.

The Mavs fell behind the Spurs by 12 points in the first quarter, and Carlisle said of his team’s comeback: “The whole thing started when Felton went in the game and he started picking up full-court, applying pressure, and it started a chain reaction.

“We just picked up our energy and we carried it forward. That’s what you have to do.”

Felton has continued to work hard this season while waiting for his opportunity to play, but he admitted that all the sitting has played tricks with his mind.

Felton, after all, is a prideful man who started 667 of 723 games during his nine-year career before the New York Knicks traded him to Dallas on June 25.

“I’ve been professional all year, stayed positive and kept working,” Felton said. “I know what my worth is, I know what type of guard I am, and I’ve proven it over the last nine years in this league while being a starter.

“My main thing is to help this team win and see how far we can go in these playoffs and try to win a championship. Whatever way I can contribute, whether it’s making these guys go harder in practice, being that veteran mentor for those guys to help them out, that’s my role.”

Carlisle, whose team plays at San Antonio on Friday, is appreciative of the way Felton has conducted himself this season, saying: “He’s kept himself ready, he’s been a positive guy all year.”

In 22 games this season, Felton has averaged 2.1 points and one assist in 6.5 minutes. Those are by far the worst numbers of his career — numbers that he knows would drastically increase if his playing time increased.

“When you’re not playing and you’re watching, you want to be out there and you want to help the team, but your number hasn’t been called,” Felton said. “It’s been tough. I’d be lying in saying that it wasn’t, because I’m a competitor and I love to play.

“But it’s just something I’m dealing with, something I’ve got to deal with, and I’m going to be the best teammate that these guys know. I’m not going to be a cancer; I’m not going to be that guy that’s complaining. I’m just going to come out and work hard every day, do my job, and when my number is called I have to make myself ready.”

This story was originally published March 25, 2015 at 7:18 PM with the headline "Mavericks guard Felton stays positive despite difficult season."