Luka Doncic was supposed to be in contention for the MVP award this time of the year, but instead, he’s watching himself and the Dallas Mavericks fail to even qualify for the play-in tournament.
Kendrick Perkins has ripped into Luka and claimed that people do not hold the 24-year-old Slovenian accountable.
“Luka, it’s not everybody else around you all the time. Sooner or later, it is you. When I watch Luka, I get so disturbed by his body language. Not only towards the officiating but towards his teammates. The pouting, the hanging of the head, going to the media. You talk about giving up a 132? How many of those points were on you last night? When are you gonna be accountable and say, ‘I am tired of getting picked on? I’m gonna do more on the defensive side… I could at least give effort’… It’s easy to say it’s Kyrie’s fault or that J-KIdd doesn’t know what he’s doing. At what point do we start pointing the finger at Luka?”
"When I watch Luka [Doncic], I get so disturbed by his body language not only towards the officiating but towards his [Mavs] teammates. The pouting, the hanging of the head, going to the media… when are you gonna be accountable?"
🗣️ Kendrick Perkinspic.twitter.com/391T2WmtZ3
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) April 3, 2023
The barometer of success for Dallas has solely been dependent on what Luka has done this season. Their record would be much worse without Doncic scoring 50 points in narrow wins over tanking teams like the Pistons and Spurs. He even had to drop 60-21-10 in overtime to beat a short-handed Knicks team in December.
The incredible offensive load Luka carried all season essentially ended his season in February with nagging injuries. But is Perkins right about his defensive flaws and poor leadership?
Luka Doncic Hasn’t Developed As A Leader
From what everyone can see, Doncic is a relatively private person that doesn’t interact much with the media. He had clearly strong relationships in the Mavs locker room with players like Dorian Finney-Smith, Jalen Brunson, and Boban Marjanovic, all players who are not ending the 22-23 season with the Mavs. Having those voices around him in the locker room helped shape his leadership style, which has been impacted by them gone.
Luka and Kyrie Irving seem to have a good relationship, but it seems Irving may take the mantle of the locker room motivator. Doncic demands a lot from his teammates, constantly yelling at them and the officials during a game. That isn’t the best way to get your team to believe in you, so Doncic definitely needs to find a sifter touch with his leadership. This isn’t the ’80s, and modern NBA players don’t necessarily respond to a 24-year-old prodigy constantly yelling at them.
Doncic showed defensive flashes in their loss to the Hawks, which Perkins criticized. It was Doncic’s best defensive game of the season, clamping up both Trae Young and Dejounte Murray down the stretch to ensure Dallas had a chance of winning. Ultimately, they lost, and the Mavs’ chances to make the play-in could end as soon as tomorrow.
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