Luka Doncic put up another sensational performance to help the Mavericks win their third game in a row on a roster that’s been decimated with injuries. The 120-113 win over the Grizzlies got chippy late in the game, as Doncic received a technical for excessive trash-talking, with the referees making sure he didn’t get away with it.
Referee James Williams: “You started all of it.”
Luka Doncic: “I started it? They’ve been talking sh*t the whole game.”
Ref James Williams to Luka Doncic after calling a tech on him "You. Started. All of it." 😅 pic.twitter.com/5DEfUDB1wJ
— Nick Angstadt (@NickVanExit) December 12, 2023
The technical call was pretty soft, as Doncic was just talking to players. However, Luka spent most of the game antagonizing his opponents and the Grizzlies crowd, so the technical wasn’t surprising.
Luka literally got a tech for trash talking with a player. He told Williams bye bye and got a tech for it. WTF? This is just as ridiculous as the tech he got for smiling. Luka was right. They're just mad he's busting their asses.🤷♂️ pic.twitter.com/jtaLeqlh4b
— Matej Sportinfo (@MatejSportinfo) December 12, 2023
Luka got into multiple heated arguments with Grizzlies forward Vince Williams Jr. Williams was guarding Luka for stretches in the second half, prompting both players to exchange words. The highlight came when Doncic asked the Grizzlies’ youngster to look at the scoreboard as Luka was cooking.
Luka telling the 2K NPC to look at the scoreboard https://t.co/xxJN2Ermp1
— Jo (@MavsStan41) December 12, 2023
Luka had some smoke for the Grizzlies crowd as well, pretending to cry as they booed him for his antics and play on the night.
Luka trolling the Memphis crowd Lmfao https://t.co/LlWWbEoV7i
— Jo (@MavsStan41) December 12, 2023
No matter how you feel about him, it’s clear that Doncic is one of the most entertaining players in the NBA by his trash-talking skills. Luka recently got a technical for trash-talking Kris Dunn (rescinded by the NBA) and has iconic moments of not backing down from players like Devin Booker as they trash-talk him.
Doncic had the Grizzlies frazzled tonight, dropping 35 points, eight rebounds, six assists, two blocks, and two steals in the win. The Mavericks were without four of their top-six rotational options, with Kyrie Irving, Tim Hardaway Jr., Josh Green, and Grant Williams all ruled out with injury.
Mavericks Headed To Face The Reigning In-Season Tournament Champions
This was the first game of a rough back-to-back for the Mavericks, as they’re now headed home to Dallas to host the Los Angeles Lakers, coming off their In-Season Tournament Cup win. The injuries are unlikely to clear up in one night, so the Mavericks will be running their fatigued unit against the Lakers in the hope of going 2-0 up in their season series.
The Lakers have multiple defensive weapons that can attack Doncic, with Jarred Vanderbilt particularly having a strong track record in guarding Luka. The Mavericks star is averaging 32.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 8.5 assists this season, so he’s bound to put up big numbers, but the Lakers will look to make him as inefficient as possible.
Both teams are in a rich vein of form, with both teams winning their last three regular-season games. The Mavs are one of the most depleted teams in the NBA right now. The Lakers were heavily depleted for most of the season but have their core rotation back, minus Gabe Vincent.
The Lakers will fancy their chances of drawing blood against the Mavericks, who would struggle to match up with the Lakers even if they were fully healthy. But Luka Magic has produced incredible moments over the last few seasons, and Mavs fans will hope he has another sensational night in him to carry them over the Lakers.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
