DALLAS – Luka Doncic has not had many reasons to show her contagious smile lately. He firmly believes in the professional benefits of playing basketball, but that is difficult to do when his Dallas Mavericks lost 10 of the previous 13 games, as was the case when he reported to work on Saturday night at the American Airlines Center.
Assist Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry by bringing back Doncic’s joy. Even in an empty arena, there is nothing that electrifies the NBA atmosphere as much as cooking Curry. That was certainly the case on Saturday, with Curry going 11 out of 19 in the 3-point range and launching a flurry of stupid pictures, the kind that makes you laugh, on the way to 57 points.
Doncic happily accepted Curry’s spectacular performance as a challenge. He responded with a tour that reminded the national television audience why this 21-year-old entered the season weighing in on MVP expectations, matching his career record with 42 points and distributing 11 assists to take Dallas to an exciting one – and necessary desperation – 134-132 victory.
“Obviously, facing Steph is fun,” said Doncic. “I have to have more fun playing to be who I was before. I just need to enjoy the game again.”
If you didn’t like this game, basketball is probably not the sport for you. Or maybe you’re just a bitter soul. How else can you explain not to smile when you see Curry doing an exaggerated shoulder shimmy on the half court logo after emptying a transition bar from there? How can you not appreciate the artistic beauty of the best sniper in NBA history dancing with your dribble before draining steps back 30 feet with one hand on your face?
“What Steph does is unbelievable,” said Doncic. “I just think that all the shots will go in when he shoots. It’s unbelievable the way he plays and it’s nice to watch, even if you’re on the opposing team.”
As Mavs coach Rick Carlisle of Curry said, “He’s one of the guys who would pay a lot to watch the game.”
Doncic, who only follows Curry among the guards in early All-Star polls, is definitely another player who falls into that category. It’s not just Doncic’s ability to package scores – he now has all six 40-point performances and 10 assists in the franchise’s history, for example – and create highlights that make it worthwhile to buy a ticket or at least turn on the TV to see. He is an artist with a rare skill at the moment, something he has in common with the NBA legends that Carlisle has watched closely before.
“The basketball floor is his stage,” said Carlisle of Doncic. “Guys like him – and I was around [Larry] Bird; I was close to Reggie Miller – when there is another guy on the other team taking your game to the level of Curry, you feel an obligation if you are that type of player. I saw Bird do that; I saw Miller do that.
“You just go deeper. You find a way to try to match the guy and try to match the guy to your team. And that’s exactly what he did.”
Doncic never allowed Curry to take complete control of the game. Certainly there were periods when Curry was unstoppable, but Doncic continued to respond. Case in point: the final 90 seconds of the second quarter, when Curry crowned his half of 30 points with a cutting layup and a pair of long 3s and Doncic hit a 3 sandwiched by a pair of beautiful floats, giving the Mavs an eight-point the lead at halftime.
Doncic, one of the league’s lowest-scoring, high-volume, long-range gunners, shot like a Splash Brother on Saturday night. He was 7 years old in the 3-point range. And he improved as the stakes increased, hitting 3 of 5 3s in the fourth period, while the Mavs kept the Warriors at bay, the largest giving Dallas a seven-point advantage with 44.5 seconds remaining.
“His eyes lit up a little,” said Curry. “He made some big shots tonight.”
Of course, a seven point lead is not safe with Curry in sizzle mode. Curry reduced the Mavs lead to four points seconds later, dropping a 3 from a Draymond Green feed (a point center that had its second consecutive performance of 15 assists and that Besides that is a pleasure to watch). Then, all of a sudden, it was a one point game, after Curry danced and shot to the track for an e-1 layup with 28.6 seconds remaining.
Imagine the pressure the Mavs felt at that moment, having lost 12 consecutive games with a single possession, the third longest streak of its kind in NBA history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
This streak, it is important to note, included only regular season games. You probably remember Doncic putting the exclamation points in a playoff masterpiece by hitting a step backwards 3 to beat the overtime bell in Dallas’ game 4 win over LA Clippers last season. Doncic had a 43-point triple-double that night when he was questioned due to a sprained ankle suffered about 36 hours earlier; it was a performance that eliminated any doubt that the young man belonged to the discussion of the best in the league.
Back at critical time on Saturday night, the Warriors decided that they would not let Doncic seal the game by scoring a goal, sending a pair against him 30 feet from the rim while the timer clocked down. Doncic accepted the challenge by taking advantage of the tactic, delivering a jump pass to Maxi Kleber, who was left alone in the corner and hit dagger 3.
“He’s very polite,” said Curry, tipping the cap to Doncic. “He’s shown it since his debut year, and he’s improved. And who knows how high the ceiling is for him?”
It will be fun to find out.