A little over a year ago, the Dallas Mavericks were the sensation of the playoffs. They finished the first phase with 52 victories and slipped into the Western Conference final after liquidating the Utah Jazz and the Phoenix Suns. Only the Warriors, future champions, were able to stop Doncic and company. Today the Mavericks are out of the playoffs, out of the positions that allow access to the play-ins (from the seventh to the tenth of each Conference) and less than two weeks away from leaving on vacation.
“It’s really frustrating. You can tell with me on the track. Sometimes I don’t feel like it’s me, I’m just out there, you know? I used to have a lot of fun, smiling on the court, but it’s been very frustrating for many reasons, not just basketball.”commented Doncic after a recent loss. Someone who knows him well as Pablo Laso reflects on his statements: «I didn’t like them. I don’t like that it conveys a feeling of weakness. I think he shouldn’t say that, if he thinks that about himself, he should stop talking and fix it, not blame anyone ». From the United States he makes sure that the problems go beyond what is seen on the pitch and then it all moves to the track. His gesture with his hands implying that the referees against the Warriors were bought and that he has earned him a $35,000 fine has been one of the last chapters.
Doncic and the Mavericks’ season changed with the arrival of Kyrie Irving. The franchise decided that the controversial guard of the Nets was the solution for the team to grow at least momentarily because they only hired him until the end of the season. When he arrived, the Mavs were fourth in the West (28/26) and since then the balance is 9/13. And that Irving off the track has been restrained. No flat earth, anti-Zionism, conspiracy theories, discussions about the covid vaccine… He contributes 26 points per night with good shooting percentages, but when both have coincided on the track, the Mavs’ mark is 4/9. The connection between the two stars is like the Mavericks’ defense, sparse. Behind they are one of the five worst teams in the League, they are also the ones that rebound the least (the statistic that has the most to do with desire) and the third with the fewest assists. Since January 29 there has not been a game in which less than one hundred points fit. And the perimeter when Doncic, Irving and Hardaway come together is a six-lane highway for the opposing team.
The Mavericks have five finals left. Now they are in the middle of a tour of the East and close the season at home against the Kings, Bulls and Spurs. With eight teams in less than four games, the options for the Texans remain open.
Doncic’s individual numbers are still a scandal: 32.9 points, 8.6 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game. But the bad season of the Mavs separates him from the fight for the MVP. At 23 years old, the Slovenian is “fed up” with adding individual recognitions and the more than 40 million dollars that he will collect next season they are no consolation. The franchise is in decomposition due to the movements that led to the arrival of Kyrie Irving. From the bench, Jason Kidd does not offer solutions either and nobody counts on him on the bench next season.
Doncic could start thinking about the next World Cup much sooner than he thought. The Slovenian team, with his presence, will be one of the candidates to climb to the podium in the tournament that will be held from August 25 to September 10 in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.
