Over the past two few seasons, Luka Doncic has gotten into the habit of starting the season extremely out of shape.
In the latest report by Tim MacMahon, the young star was up to 260 pounds this season.
Following Dallas’ 3-point loss to the Nets on Tuesday, Doncic responded to the story.
(via ESPN)
“People are going to talk about it, yes or no,” said Doncic. “I know I’ve got to do better. I had a long summer. I had the Olympics, took three weeks off, and I relaxed a little bit. Maybe too much. I’ve just got to get back on track.”
Even amid these concerning facts, and an underwhelming season, the Mavericks have not lost faith that Luka is a star that can bring them Championships and the franchise continues to shower him with praise.
“When we drafted him, I think we didn’t know what to expect from him. We had no idea he was going to be this good. How he reads the game, how big he is, his shot is a lot better than we thought, his in-between game, the runners the post ups,” said Dirk Nowitzki. “He is the full package at such a young age, and it’s been incredible to watch for me, and obviously all the Mavs fans, how much he knows the game and how much he sees at a young age. I feel like it usually comes with experience after playing in the league for five, six, seven, eight years. But the way he reads the game is on another level, so I’m super happy the Mavs signed him to an extension, and we’ll have him around for a long, long time.”
There is no doubt that the Slovenian is a special talent and he has already proven he’s among the NBA elites.
But the mark of a true Champion is holding yourself accountable and if Luka can’t get better at staying in shape, it could be the thing that prevents his team from reaching their full potential.
Doncic, 25, is averaging 25.4 points on 44.5% shooting this season.
