Never Luka Doncic had not been excluded in a playoff match, and this is only the 3rd time in his entire career! This shows that his exit for six fouls in Game 3 is an event. Without necessarily being a turning point in the match, this 6th foul deprived Jason Kidd of his best player for the last four minutes, and Kyrie Irving found himself more alone than ever to attempt the feat.
“We couldn't play physical… I don't want to say anything, but I don't know… Six fouls in an NBA final. Honestly, man… Be better than that! » he shouts to the referees. While he only had two fouls at the start of the 4th quarter, Doncic will take four in eight minutes, including two in thirty seconds! Both on contentious actions with Jaylen Brown. On the 5th, the Celtics winger wraps it with his elbow, but the referees whistle the foul on Doncic. In the 6th, the Slovenian plays the passage with force, but the referees judged that he had moved his right foot to block the way for his opponent.
Doncic defends poorly and exhausts himself…
Jason Kidd of course took on a challenge, and the slow motions don't provide a real answer. But the referees stood by their decision, and Doncic watched the “money time” from the bench… “I’m not going to take a challenge for every mistake” plagues Jason Kidd, while Doncic “does not remember” to have already taken 5th and 6th faults in thirty seconds.
Either way, Doncic wasn't having a big night. Physically diminished, he moaned from the first minutes of the match. And this is often the case when he does not master his subject. Boston's defense is too physical and too varied, and when it doesn't have Derrick White or Jrue Holiday on its back, it's the Tatum-Brown duo that takes over. Result: 11 out of 27 on shots, and 1 out of 7 from 3-point range. For Kidd, fatigue plays a big part, and it's because Doncic doesn't save himself on defense. Clearly, the Slovenian still defends poorly, and he compensates with physical contact. And therefore mistakes.
On the edge of the “sweep”…
“He has a target on his back and he must understand that we will be behind him in defense and that we will protect him” explains the Mavericks coach. “He carries a heavy load on offense, and they stuck him on every play. He must be able to play while being able to rest in attack. »
On the verge of a sweep and while no team has won a series after being down 3-0, Doncic remains positive. “It's not over until it's over… So we have to believe in it and I know we're going to say this is the first four wins and we're going to stick together. We lose together, and we win together, and we will stick together.” he concludes about Game 4 scheduled for Friday.
