Luka Doncic believes the Dallas Mavericks will need more scoring in the 2024 NBA Finals to overcome a 2-0 deficit and defeat the Boston Celtics.
The Dallas Mavericks are two losses away from finishing the 2023-24 NBA season as runners-up. They must defeat the Boston Celtics in Games 3 and 4 to have a chance, with Luka Doncic openly discussing how the Mavericks’ offense must improve in order to win games, despite the fact that the team’s defense has been excellent.
“Our defense hasn’t been horrible. We just can’t score. That is our biggest issue right now. I believe we’re getting some excellent looks, and as I previously stated, we have trust that everyone on our squad can make a shot that involves shooting the ball, so we just have to keep believing.”
The Mavericks have had two of their worst offensive outings of the postseason in this series’ first two losses. They failed to score 100 points or more in both games, converting only 13-53 (24.5%) of their three-point attempts. Doncic is the only Maverick to have hit multiple threes this series, with the others failing to do so.
Hopefully, the squad can improve its shooting performance at home in Games 3 and 4. Doncic has been performing as expected, averaging 31.0 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 6.0 assists throughout the first two games. In the first two games, he went 6-13 (46.2%) at the free throw line.
Luka has also been a defensive liability, but this could be due to the injuries he’s dealing with and his offensive burden, as no other Maverick has appeared offensively in this series.
The Mavericks have depended on their defense to get to the NBA Finals, with that unit capable of challenging the Celtics for long portions of the game. However, with the Celtics’ offensive talent, the Mavs cannot get enough stops during a game to secure the victory with a poor offensive effort.
Luka Doncic is playing despite multiple injuries.
Luka Doncic has put his body on the line for the Mavericks throughout this playoff run, battling through a series of injuries to help the Mavs reach the Finals. Doncic suffered a knee strain in Game 2 of the first round, and subsequent ankle and back problems did not keep the Slovenian guard off the court.
Doncic provided a cryptic update on his injuries before Game 3, assuring everyone that he will be fine without disclosing any information.
“I feel great. I don’t want to get into much more detail, but I’m feeling okay.”
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon and Mallika Andrews quickly confirmed that Doncic has been receiving pain-numbing injections to treat the back ailment he sustained during game one of the NBA Finals.
“According to sources, Luka Doncic had a pain-killing injection before to Game 2 to numb the area of his thoracic contusion. The idea is that Doncic will get another chance before Game 3.
Doncic must stay on the court if the Mavericks are to have any hope of winning four of the next five NBA Finals games. Throughout the playoffs, he has averaged 29.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 8.5 assists, demonstrating why he is regarded as one of the finest players in the world, if not the best.