Luka Doncic cut a frustrated figure during the third quarter of Tuesday’s game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Indiana Pacers. With about two minutes remaining in the quarter, Doncic somehow missed a wide-open layup. As he facepalmed in shock after that, he missed the loose ball right in front of him.
Daniel Gafford hustled to give the Mavericks a chance at keeping possession following the miss and had Doncic not pouted, he would have easily grabbed it. Instead, the ball went out of bounds and the Pacers got possession. Indiana called timeout right after and Doncic threw a water bottle when he sat down on the bench.
LUKA is PISSSSSSSED pic.twitter.com/LwNDLSi5El
— MavsHighlights (@MavsHighlights) March 6, 2024
It could be frustration over the miss, or that he could have gotten the ball, or both. Unfortunately for Doncic, things did not get much better from then on out. Despite him finishing with 39 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists, the Pacers managed to keep the Mavericks at bay to come away with a 137-120 win.
It was a third straight loss for the Mavericks and their fifth in the last six games. It dropped them to 34-28 on the season and they continue to be quite the inconsistent outfit.
Just before this terrible run, Dallas had won seven in a row and seemed to be on course for a strong second half of the season. The additions of Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington at the trade deadline had seemingly galvanized them, but things have now gone south yet again.
Luka Doncic Spoke On The Mavericks’ Defensive Issues
Where Gafford and Washington, in particular, were supposed to help Dallas was on the defensive end. Their defense has been woeful even after the trades, though, and the Pacers here shot 53.8% from the field. After the game, Doncic was asked how they could fix their defense.
“I don’t know, honestly,” Doncic said. “But we know we gotta fix it.”
Doncic felt there were no issues with regard to communication and trust between the team when it came to defense. The five-time All-Star was then asked if the defensive schemes that are in place would work if the players executed them well.
“Yeah, for sure,” Doncic stated. “The coaches work hard every day. There’s a lot of coaches that work, watching film all that stuff so I think we gotta just be better, man. I know defensively we gotta be better.”
Just how bad has the defense been? Well, the Mavericks have a defensive rating of 126.0 after the All-Star break, which ranks dead last in the league. Yes, they are even below teams like the Washington Wizards and the Detroit Pistons, and that’s never a good sign. You are not going to win too many games when the defense is that bad.
The Mavericks, who are now eighth in the West, are just half a game ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers and a game ahead of the Golden State Warriors. Unless they turn things around quickly, they might end up as the ninth or 10th seed.
That would leave the Mavericks with no margin for error in the Play-In Tournament and they would want to avoid that at all costs. They missed the playoffs last season and a repeat of that would be disastrous. It might also lead to more questions about Doncic’s future in Dallas, as the 25-year-old desperately wants to compete for championships.
Thank you for being a valued reader of Fadeaway World. If you liked this article, please consider following us on Google News. We really appreciate your support.
