Luka Doncic, star player of the Dallas Mavericks had every reason to be frustrated after his team’s shocking 137-120 defeat to the Indiana Pacers at the American Airlines Center, in Dallas, Texas. The defeat against the Pacers becomes the third loss in a row for the Mavericks who have struggled for consistency despite the impressive performances of their star player.
Luka Doncic had his third triple-double in three games all of which haven’t led to wins for his team. Against the Pacers, he scored 39 points, had 10 rebounds, and created 11 assists. The wonderful stats were all in vain largely due to the Mavericks’ poor defense and finishing.
Doncic spoke to a couple of reporters in the team’s dressing room when he was asked about his monstrous 35-point triple-double performances he has been producing, while at the same time ending up on the losing side and also how frustrating it is to him. He responded:
It doesn’t matter, I just want to win, man. That’s it.
Luka Doncic said
Shockingly, the Dallas Mavericks have lost five of their last six games despite Doncic averaging 37.3 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 11.3 assists per game. Currently, they sit 8th on the Western Conference standings with a record of 34-28. The Mavericks would hope to solve their defensive troubles and return to winning ways when they welcome the Miami Heat to the American Airlines Center.
The Mavericks lose again despite impressive scoring performance from Doncic
Despite being the bookie’s favorite, the Dallas Mavericks lost once again, third in a row to the Indiana Pacers. The Mavs in their last six games have gone 1-5 and have a 127.3 defensive rating over that same stretch, despite the best efforts of their star player, Luka Doncic.
Luka Doncic against Indiana Pacers’ Aaron Nesmith (via Open Source/X)The Dallas Mavericks had the best winning run in the league between 6th and 23rd February when they went on a seven-game blistering run. Coach Kidd spoke after the defeat last night. He said:
We got the personnel. We got the team. This is actually a great test for us to be able to go through a hard time in March because it only gets harder in April and May and June. And so this is a great test to be tested in the sense that we’re going to let go of the rope or we’re going to continue to come to work. Everyone’s coming to work. Everyone has the positive mindset, energy. Everyone’s trying to do the right thing right now.
Jason Kidd said
Luka Doncic despite his offensive threats seems to lag defensively and Coach Kidd emphasized the importance of the team covering for him as they over-rely on him on the offensive end of things. This season he is currently averaging 34.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game.
