For Luka Doncic there seems to be no minor challenge, nor challenges that cannot be overcome with his gift. He was, is and will be a superstar and few unbelievers remain. The last game, against the Celtics, is one more demonstration of what he is capable of. Not one but two triples to win: where do you see things like that? But to stay in one or two shots would be to stay in the upper layer and not delve into what it really means, which is much more.
To the Celtics, who have two players who will be in the Atlanta All-Star (Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown), disarmed them without Kristaps Porzingis, the second best player of the Mavericks, and without Maxi Kleber, a player highly valued by Carlisle. It is in these situations that it grows. It is not the first meeting that the Latvian fails and without that crutch it costs more, but there is life.
Doncic is lifting Dallas from a very complicated position, not alone but pulling the bandwagon as he has rarely had to do in his three seasons in the NBA. The streak is 6-1 and the team is already touching the top eight places (9th) with a 50% win-loss balance (15-15). In this period, Doncic’s numbers are shocking: 34 points, 8.1 points and 8.6 rebounds. Give the callus, which is often said. But perhaps the most positive are his shooting percentages: in triples, crowning him with the one that gave him the victory against Boston in the last second, a 48.3% correctness. It is his great pending subject, He has already complained about his percentages from outside the perimeter on several occasions this year and brings him down the street of bitterness, but the fact is that the most positive version of the team is seeing him making a good amount of shots.
Doncic was saying in the last hours that Damian Lillard deserved a starting spot for the West in the next All Star and maybe he was the one who wasn’t worth it. It was probably like that at the time of the voting closing, but what has come after is the realization that it is at the level of the best. The last two games are victories with him without giving up a meter. In Atlanta he will live his second experience in the All-Star Game, something different this year with the coronavirus pandemic still raging.
Doncic assured a few weeks ago that he was not seen in the MVP conversation because of the few victories he was obtaining. He was probably right too. He even dropped out of the race. But come back strong. The Jokic, Curry, Durant or LeBron James on duty are strong competition at the moment, but we must also count on the comeback of the Slovenian in that field as he is being in the group with his teammates.
The impression it leaves behind is a lunar footprint. Cedric Maxwell, legendary Celtics player, dared in the preview with a daring comparison: “He’s Larry Bird reincarnated. He’s the Larry of the 1920s. Doncic plays exactly as he would now. Larry had another important aspect that I hope Luka will develop: his role as a leader.”. After the umpteenth exhibition, it was the turn of his coach, also ex-Celtic Rick Carlisle, who went a little further: “He is a very particular player and person. Players like him or Michael Jordan, LeBron James or Kobe Bryant seem to have special vision, like infrared rays, in these situations. It is difficult to know how their brains work, but it has been three decades. watching them and I see that they focus only on one thing as the game tightens and the moment becomes more important. Doncic not only has that vision, but also the desire and the tools “.
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