Whoever saw this Tuesday evening’s clash between Mavericks and Wolves must have felt like witnessing a deja vu, as the Texan team proved once again why they were the worthy winners of last season’s Western Conference Finals, which were against Minnesota. Just like a few months, Luka Doncic led the show.
“That’s what I f—ing do,” the Slovenian roared as his 32-foot step-back dagger went into the net last night at the Target Center. His shot dropped as he was standing next to the half-court logo, and extended Dallas lead to eight points with 1:04 remaining in their 120-114 victory.
It was almost impossible not to reminisce on the last time both teams faced each other in the playoffs, back when the Mavericks took the conference series after only five games in May. “We’ve seen this movie before,” Jason Kidd said.
The Luka Doncic dagger + Klay Thompson just smiling in the background 😭🔥
(via @dallasmavs) pic.twitter.com/ZPWcsFDVlC
— MFFL NATION (@NationMffl) October 30, 2024
His head coach continued to praise his European star, anticipating that the guard is entering this season more fearless than ever. “He loves the opportunity to win the game. He’s not scared, and he stepped up and made a big shot, ” Kidd said after Luka’s 27-point, 8-rebound, 9-assist performance.
If this was actually a movie, like the Mavs coach suggested, then this was definitely the sequel. Remember last season when Doncic danced around the Target Center court before dropping a step-back three-pointer in front of Rudy Gobert to win Game 2 of the Western Finals’ series.
This time, the point guard’s dagger was over Nickel Alexander-Walker, and it was clear that Doncic released all his frustration with that shot. During the entire match, the crowd had been shouting at him, trying to distract him from performing at his best. Problem is, Luka has been playing professional since he was 16.
“I heard a lot of stuff. They really like me here,” the superstar told the press after defeating the home team with a 6-point margin. “You know, last year was fun. It was a big moment in my career and in my life, so it was fun to be back here.”
As was the case during their playoff-clash against Minnesota, Kyrie Irving co-starred last night alongside Luka when he was needed the most
Luka would’ve not been able to lead his team to victory this Tuesday night if he didn’t have Kyrie Irving next to him on court, as the former Brooklyn star scored 25 of his team-high 35 points in the second half of the game. In general, Dallas hit 21 points in the last 7 minutes, with Luka and Kyrie combining for 16 of them.
“It’s just winning time,” Irving expressed. “I knew that we needed to create some separation in the game just to continue to ride on that confidence, and it worked out well for us. But we know that [Minnesota] is going to be a little bit different when we play them every single time. They’re going to make a little bit of adjustment here and there. And down the line, we’re going to see ’em pretty often.”
The Slovenian has missed his first seven shots from beyond the arc last night, but finally ended the drought with his remarkable 32-foot attempt. Dopncic, who was 10-of-27 from the field, wasn’t able to explain why he can score the most difficult shots and missed so many open ones.
“I don’t know how I can make those shots and not normal shots,” Luka said with a smile. “I don’t know how I do it. At the end of the day, I’ve just got to get the rustiness out. I’ll be back. I didn’t play the whole preseason, so I need some time. But we got the win. That’s all that matters.”
