Luka Doncic makes a pass from a seated position. (0:19)
Luka Doncic felt that he let his teammates down with what he accurately described as a horrible defensive effort during the second half of a Game 2 loss to the Phoenix Suns. The backcourt partner of his needed only one word to sum up his performance in the two trips to Phoenix.
They arrived at the American Airlines Center on Friday night to make sure the game was different. The duo succeeded in ruining the birthday of Suns star Chris Paul and leading Dallas to their first win of the Western Conference semifinals.
The Mavs were in control of the game thanks to a game-high 28 points from Brunson, who was six more than he had combined in the first two games of the series. Doncic had 26 points, 13 rebound, nine assists, and two steals.
The coach of the Dallas Mavericks said that everyone joined the party after he said that Doncic didn't get much support in the first game. Luka was a great defensive player. He also participated. When that happens, it puts us in a different position.
The Mavs guards played better than the Suns backcourt of Paul and Booker, who combined for more turnovers than field goals. They had a dozen turnovers in their most recent game as teammates.
The Suns guards dominated the first two games of the series in Phoenix.
Booker had 18 points on 6-of-13 shooting. They came out and played hard. That is all. We have a series.
Paul committed seven turnovers and was held to 12 points and four assists. In the fourth quarter of the Game 2 win, Paul had 14 points, relentlessly hunting and exploiting switches on Doncic.
Paul said that they came out and did what they were supposed to do.
The primary defenders on Paul and Booker, Reggie Bullock and Dorian Finney-Smith, led Dallas effort on that end of the floor. Double-teaming Booker more often was one of the schematic changes made by the Mavs. Hours after Kidd publicly called on him to participate on defense, Doncic dramatically improved his effort.
He was diving on the floor in the first or second possession.
Doncic downplayed the criticism of his Game 2 defense, even if it was from his coach or others. He blamed himself for the defensive issues in Dallas.
Doncic, who is averaging 35.3 points, 10.0 rebound and 8.0 assists in the series, knew he had to do better. I think I improved on defense this year. I knew I had to get back to my team and play better defense after the second half of Game 2.
In the first round, he averaged 27.8 points per game in a six-game win over the Utah Jazz, but was a nonfactor in the two games in Phoenix. He was 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217
Kidd wanted him to be aggressive. I thought this was the first time he was aggressive. He did not wait. He was not surveying.
Despite missing his first three shots, he finished the first quarter with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting. He had another 10-point quarter in the third, which was crucial because Doncic sat out the final five minutes due to foul trouble.
I found myself playing with a little bit more hop in my step, getting to spots quicker and making decisions faster. I kept doing that because my teammates kept giving me confidence. I found a way to bounce back tonight, but I just can't be satisfied with this.
The Mavs snapped their 11-game losing streak against the Suns, which dated to November 2019, but players and coaches avoided discussing it during the series.
Doncic said they are going to believe until the end.
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