The Dallas Mavericks fall just short of their goal and lose the NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics. It’s a setback – but one that could have a hugely positive impact on the future of the franchise and Luka Doncic in the long term. A comment.
By Julian Huter
The dream of the first championship since the Dirk Nowitzki era has been shattered. In Game 5 of the NBA Finals, the Dallas Mavericks were defeated 88:106 in Boston.
Despite the bitter defeat in the finals against the Celtics, the Dallas Mavericks can learn valuable lessons from this series and this playoff run.
This defeat shows the Mavs and their superstar Luka Doncic a clear plan to take the final step and become NBA champions.
The star duo Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic can work and carry a team at least to the finals.
This finding comes as no surprise to most NBA experts – despite a difficult first year together. Both were the driving force behind the Mavericks’ success this season – but the positive surprise in this postseason was the Dallas defense.
The best workhorse is of little use if the wagon has no wheels. A good example of this was last season, when the Mavericks missed the playoffs completely despite having Doncic and Irving because they had one of the worse defenses in the league. The Mavericks’ identity on this side of the ball has since changed completely.
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Thanks to the mid-season trades for Daniel Gafford and PJ Washington, Dallas was able to hermetically seal off the zone and sometimes drove superstars like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC) or Anthony Edwards to despair.
Coach Jason Kidd and GM Nico Harrison must build on that this offseason. The Mavs are defensively strong and deep in the big man positions – even with Maxi Kleber, who has recently been plagued by injuries.
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They would benefit from having another top defender on the wing positions to make life difficult for the opposing top star in tight situations and to relieve Irving and Doncic defensively.
But the superstars also have to do their part on the less glamorous side of the game. Doncic and Irving have shown some promising approaches at times – when they played with full energy and focus in defense.
Doncic’s Game 4 was particularly impressive. After being pilloried by the media in the USA for his constant arguing with the referees, his poor defense and lack of energy, the Slovenian gave the perfect answer.
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He was completely focused on the game, probably played his best game of the playoffs defensively and continued to be the focal point of the Mavs offense. The criticism didn’t shake his confidence – it drove him to become even better. Even if you have to put it in context that the score was already 0-3.
However, the Mavs need this Doncic to win a title – and do so consistently. This Finals defeat can serve as a lesson. Celtics stars Jayson Tatum and Finals MVP Jaylen Brown also had to admit defeat to the Golden State Warriors in their first Finals appearance in 2022 – and drew the right conclusions from it.
If Doncic manages to do just that, the Mavericks and the media will look back on the 2024 season as an important chapter in the hero’s journey of the former prodigy. A Doncic without complaining, who plays better defense and works on his fitness, can rise to the spheres of Michael Jordan and LeBron James.
The ball is now in the Mavericks’ court – and especially in Doncic’s.
2024-06-20 13:02:00
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