DALLAS – Sometimes it does not matter who defends Luka Doncic. For example – or 42 points – Paul George, the superstar of the LA Clippers whose name always appears in conversations about the NBA’s biggest peripherals. Doncic made the four-time All-Defensive pick look foolish on numerous occasions during his masterful performance in the Dallas Mavericks’ 105-89 victory Wednesday.
Doncic, who shot 42 points on 16-of-28 and finished with nine assists, did not do all of his damage against George. Kawhi Leonard also had no luck. Neither does Nicolas Batum. Or someone else who threw the Clippers at the 22-year-old All-Star. And it was not for lack of effort.
“I mostly defensively thought we were doing a good job, even though Luka ignited us,” Clippers coach Ty Lue said.
George got the worst of it. According to data from Second Synergy, half of Doncic’s points came when he equaled George in the half. Doncic had 21 points on 15 shots – with an effective percentage of 70% in the field goal – and he dished out five assistants without turnover as he was guarded by George.
“I thought we played an excellent defense,” George said, “but they hit some very, very difficult shots, and they really made a lot of great plays.”
The play that sank the most was probably a miss by Doncic. If Doncic had swung that particular shot back, it would have been a viral climax within seconds when he hit the brakes and crossed so abruptly that George stumbled to the hardwood and put both hands down to break his fall when Doncic shot the.
It was not quite as vicious a few years ago as James Harden’s crossover and bouncer who caused former Clippers forward Wes Johnson to involuntarily sit in the middle of the court. But it was against Paul George, not some traveling companion.
Doncic’s last bucket, a 1:27 dagger float, comes after another move that left George’s hand on the floor to prevent him from falling. It was a crossbar behind the back on the right wing, where George stayed after regaining his balance, and got a nice view of Doncic in the lane.
“I’m not going to say anything about Paul George, who may have slipped on the floor or something, but Luka is an excellent player,” Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said, emphasizing the respect he has for George and the Clippers. had. “He has the ability to make these plays that are extraordinarily special.”
There are not many answers for Doncic if he shoots effectively from three points, which he has done regularly recently. In his last 14 games, Doncic has shot down 43% of the depth – and 50.5% off the floor overall – with an average of 30.5 points and 9.2 assistants in that team. Not coincidentally, the Mavs (21-18) won 11 of 14 games and moved up again in the Western Conference play-off photo after falling five .500 games five games.
It’s no secret that Doncic wants to take left, especially from the left wing. The Clippers (26-16) know this better than anyone, as it’s the shot and spot of Doncic’s unforgettable buzz to make a 43-point triple double in a play-off game over them.
Still, Doncic was still 6-out-11 from the three-point series on Wednesday, including a four-point game when he stopped after retiring, leaned in and pulled contact from Leonard when he let the shot go.
“Sometimes we made him pull back too much to the left, and he got comfortable,” Leonard said. “He got hot and made shots, and it’s hard to put the water down once such a good player is on the roll.”
ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk contributed to this report.