“We will keep Luka under 50 points. You can quote me! ». Ultimate king of “trolling” in the NBA, Gregg Popovich was taken in at his own game. 22 in the last act.
The icing on the cake, it was his 50th and 51st points, recorded on free throws 4 seconds from time, which allowed Dallas to force the decision. “I just wanted to get the win,” said the Slovenian after the match before talking about his satisfaction at having coach Pop with a big smile.
A new record as a bonus
With his third game of 50 points or more in a matter of days, he also set a new record, becoming the first player in history to rack up 250 points, 50 rebounds and 50 assists in the space of five games. And Dallas is now six straight wins.
” It’s incredible “, underlined Christian Woodauthor of 25 points. “In seven years in the league, I’ve never seen anyone do what they can do. He’s on an amazing streak. He plays like an MVP. He is clearly one of the best players in the league. »
While the Spurs had found themselves on the verge of equalizing in the very last seconds following a 2/4 from Tre Jones on free throws (125-126), Luka once again released a remarkable pass- pass to ensure victory for the Mavericks.
A story of missed free throws
After missing his first attempt on the line, with 1.1 seconds left on the clock, he simply robbed Spurs of one last chance by purposely missing his second shot…then going for the offensive rebound.
“Once again, Luka was amazing. He saved us again by missing the free throws late in the game so they didn’t have time to organize any action, even though initially he wanted to put them in.”said Jason Kidd.
Gregg Popovich was hopeful of succeeding in limiting the Mavericks star, but had to admit that the Dallas point guard took over.
“We put in a good team effort and individual effort on him, but he’s such an amazing player. His IQ is off the charts.”he admitted. “Like everyone, we prefer to win than to lose, but I remain really proud of the effort of my players and the way they continued to fight. »
Above all, he will remember that it is better not to tickle Luka Doncic!
| Luka Doncic | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2018-19 | DAL | 72 | 32 | 42.7 | 32.7 | 71.3 | 1.2 | 6.6 | 7.8 | 6.0 | 1.9 | 1.1 | 3.4 | 0.4 | 21.2 |
| 2019-20 | DAL | 61 | 34 | 46.3 | 31.6 | 75.8 | 1.3 | 8.1 | 9.4 | 8.8 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 4.3 | 0.2 | 28.8 |
| 2020-21 | DAL | 66 | 34 | 47.9 | 35.0 | 73.0 | 0.8 | 7.2 | 8.0 | 8.6 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 4.3 | 0.6 | 27.7 |
| 2021-22 | DAL | 65 | 35 | 45.7 | 35.3 | 74.4 | 0.9 | 8.3 | 9.1 | 8.7 | 2.2 | 1.2 | 4.5 | 0.6 | 28.4 |
| 2022-23 | DAL | 33 | 37 | 50.7 | 35.8 | 74.1 | 1.0 | 7.8 | 8.8 | 8.9 | 2.9 | 1.7 | 3.7 | 0.6 | 33.7 |
| Total | 297 | 34 | 46.3 | 33.9 | 73.8 | 1.0 | 7.5 | 8.6 | 8.1 | 2.3 | 1.1 | 4.1 | 0.4 | 27.2 | |
