Nobody can outshine the sun. Whether it’s ego, immaturity, or just wanting to join the party, Luka Dončić will always make his presence known, for better or for worse. There have been various examples of this working out in the team’s favor but it also craters the Dallas Mavericks at times. The shot he took against Denver in the team’s loss on Sunday with one minute left in a two point game favoring his team is a good example of the latter.
It’s well established that Luka Doncic is an otherworldly talent that everything revolves around in his basketball ecosystem. There are few players that fall in this category, namely Nikola Jokic and Lebron James. Luka is different, however, from these players because he is a true double edged sword. Every player has flaws and won’t be at the top of their game every night but the traits that make Luka otherworldly are some of the same traits that make him a flawed player.
Everything revolves around Dončić. When Luka goes on heaters, it is incredibly fun to watch because he is creating, taking, and making the toughest shots you’ll ever see. Luka creates ~80% of his shots which has consistently been the highest percentage in the league. On the surface that is really impressive but that also means that it feels like he is playing by himself out there. While his co-stars can get their games off within the flow of the offense, his heaters mean he IS the flow of the offense.
Kyrie Irving is different from his past co-stars as he is a show by himself in his own right.
Kyrie had 43 and was having one of the best shotmaking games you will ever see while the Mavs battled in the altitude. The issue wasn’t that Luka took a shot at that moment. Kyrie was hot but he couldn’t take every shot at the end of the day. The issue was the kind of shot Luka took, which only emphasized the double-edged sword nature. Any shot would’ve made it a two possession game but he decided to take a contested logo shot for no reason other than grandeur. He wanted to take and make the dagger and he wanted to do it in style. Well, he missed, badly, and momentum swung the other way and the Mavericks lost the game. No game is lost on a single play, especially with chances to win after said play, but it should be concerning that getting the best shot possible is not the main priority for Luka in crucial moments like this.
Now, Luka has improved his game over the past year to be more accommodating to other offensive-minded players. He allowed Kyrie to be himself in that game, especially in the fourth quarter, resulting in that offensive explosion. Luka’s touches and usage rate have been down this season, despite the career high in shot attempts but that is not telling the whole story. It may seem like an overreaction because it was one shot that followed a couple of big plays, I get it. That shot sparked my anger not just because of its sheer arrogance, but because it crystallized a deeper frustration: it’s a direct result of his mentality and the way he approaches the game, rather than something more tangible, like simply touching the ball less.
The team, coaching staff, and fans must come to terms with this reality, as it’s the very trait that makes him exceptional. What makes this reality bittersweet is that this trait could hinder him from fully realizing his potential as the best player in the world, as it is inherently volatile. All we can do is hope the math eventually falls within our favor.
