Mavericks’ Felton counts his blessings to be playing in NBA

It appears as though Raymond Felton is the most popular player on the Dallas Mavericks.

But to hear the veteran point guard say it, he also is probably one of the team’s most blessed players.

Felton has endured a hard-luck season after he was traded by the New York Knicks to the Mavs on June 25. In his second preseason game with the Mavs, Felton sprained his left ankle and was out for the next 31 games.

By then, the playing rotation for the point guards had been settled.

“It’s not easy, but he knew coming into this that there was going to be a lot of competition for minutes,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “He was unlucky early with the injury, but he stayed in it and he’s battled.

“And there’s a reason that guys really pull for him when he gets in games and gets on the court. He’s very well liked because he’s been such a pro and he’s such a good worker.”

Not being called upon to play in various games was not in Felton’s plans. But he also knows he is fortunate to even be wearing an NBA uniform.

The NBA suspended Felton for four games earlier this season after he took a plea deal last July that involved admitting a felony for illegally carrying a gun. The admission by Felton spared the 10-year veteran any jail time.

“I’m blessed to still be playing and be on a team,” Felton said. “Things could have gone worse, things could have gone the other way in that situation after New York.

“So to be on a team and be playing is a blessed situation, and I thank God for that.”

Felton knows basketball could have been taken away from him.

“You make mistakes and you learn from them,” Felton said. “As small as it might have been, it still is big and it could have cost me my life, and it could have caused a lot of problems for a lot of people in my family.

“So I’ve got to be conscious of that, I’ve got to be more of a grown-up in a sense of that. I’ve learned from my mistake big-time, but you live and you learn.”

What Carlisle has learned from Felton is that he’s a stand-up guy willing to accept his responsibilities.

“He’s an integrity guy, he’s a high integrity competitor,” Carlisle said. “There hasn’t been one time this year where he’s dropped his head and pouted.

“When he was hurt, when he came back and there weren’t minutes right away. He’s just remained consistently professional and he’s kept working extremely hard, which shows now that he’s getting an opportunity to play.”

It’s an opportunity Felton realizes could have all been taken away from him.

“Thank God it didn’t go the other way,” Felton said of the court ruling. “Thank God it went in my favor and now I’m here, so I’ve got to take advantage of it.”

Keys to winning

In analyzing Mavs game, Carlisle believe the stats that are tell-tale signs and could make the difference between winning and losing are rebounds and turnovers.

“Those are two possession-related stats where one team is getting the ball and one isn’t, so you’ve the potential for a four-point swing on every possession,” Carlisle said. “And with rebounding, if you’re on the defensive side and they get an offensive rebound, they get a chance to lay the ball in at times.

“Or now, in today’s game, kick it out for a 3, so you could have five-point turnaround just like that. Turnovers are the same way — if you have bad ones they are going to lead to uncontested layups and uncontested 3s.”

This story was originally published March 27, 2015 at 10:25 PM with the headline "Mavericks’ Felton counts his blessings to be playing in NBA."