In front of the Dallas Mavericks bench, God Shammgod smiles as he talks about dribbling. There was a couple of hours before the preseason game that Luka Doncic dribbled. The Mavericks player development coach Shammgod is so renowned for his ballhandling brilliance that a popular move is named after him. Shammgod jabs with his right foot, rocks back to his left, and then darts back to his right, imitating a Doncic drive to the basket. The court feels like a canvas for Doncic, who was compared to a young Picasso by his coach. Doncic's approach is similar to a graffiti artist who encounters a blank wall according to Shammgod. Shammgod says that Luka's imagination is on a whole other level.
Knicks-Grizzlies, 7:30 p.m.
Mavs-Suns, 10 p.m.
Wednesday
Friday
Celtics-Heat, 7:30 p.m.
Nuggets-Warriors, 10 p.m.
It's all times Eastern.
Skeptics questioned the ceiling for a draft prospect with limited explosion. Doncic was the youngest player in the world's second-best league to be named the NBA's Most Valuable Player before he entered the draft. Many people wondered if he could become an NBA star.
In part because he's not only a one-on-one wunderkind but also arguably the league's premier isolation weapon with one of the league's deepest bags of tricks, Doncic has established himself as a perennial NBA Most Valuable Player.
According to Second Spectrum tracking, Doncic isolated on over 1,000 plays last season. The Mavericks generated an average of 1.098 points on those possessions, which was second in the league behind the Miami Heat.
Kidd uses five-out offenses to open the floor for him to operate and sometimes he wants to run all these plays. It's about getting him the time he needs to be creative.
Blending that creativity with a package of skills and strength, as well as the vision to help defenses by passing out of traffic, has turned Doncic into the rare scorer capable of creating efficient shots at all three levels.
The Dallas Mavericks will open their 2022-23 season on the road against the Phoenix Suns. One of the toughest covers in the league is the iso arsenal.
The former Mavs coach tried to convince Doncic to stop relying on step back 3-pointers.
"He may shoot a 30-foot stepback and it may not go in; Coach: 'I don't want to see it anymore!' He could shoot six more. He's going to make them.
The step-back 3 is where some of the biggest buckets have come. He capped a personal 11-0 clutch run in a comeback win over Houston with a go-ahead step-back 3 over center Clint Capela and he still had a foot in the paint.
The Game 4 buzzer-beater was a rarity. The moment that put the finishing touches on a 43-point triple-double was a step-back 3 from his sweet spot on the left wing, setting it up by going between his legs to his right. Doncic has beaten the Celtics with last-second step-back 3s.
In his career, Doncic has attempted over one thousand step-back 3s. He has made 37.2% of those shots, which is better than his catch-and- shoot efficiency.
Shammgod says that he wants to have it where every dribbling move he does is a part of the step-back package. He can get to the step back out of any of those moves.
James Harden evolved into one of the elite isolation scorers of all time during his Houston tenure, when his step back 3 ranked as perhaps the most potent offensive weapon in the league. They are both big-framed guards with ballhandling skills and the ability to stop and suddenly dart backwards.
Doncic tries to get his stepback when he gets a switch against a center who is worried about being beaten off the dribble. It's an invitation for Doncic to drive if a defender takes away his step back.
Doncic studied clips of Harden sent to him by Shammgod early in his career. A lot of factors are involved. If the shot doesn't go in, you have to look at who is guarding you. There is a lot to think about and make a decision.
Doncic doesn't have to worry about whether his head coach approves of his shot selection because it never bothered him.
Kidd says that step back is natural. It is part of the fabric of who he is, because it can set up so many other things.
On the opening possession of the Western Conference semifinals against the Mavs, Deandre Ayton was flawless.
The ball was forced out of Doncic's hands by the Suns center. Ayton was alone against Doncic when he got the ball back.
Ayton was patient as Doncic dribbled left to right between his legs three times. With the shot clock down to five seconds, Doncic tried to drive to his right, but Ayton kept him from reaching the restricted area.
No, it didn't matter.
Doncic pivoted backwards from the free throw line after lowering his left shoulder to initiate contact.
It's a good thing.
"Dirk always did it," Doncic said of his teammate, who made that shot famous. It's difficult to block and hard to defend. It makes me feel like I have another shot at my isolation.
Between his freshman and sophomore seasons, Doncic added a mid-range escape clause to his game. There are silhouettes rising for the shot on both ends of the American Airlines Center court when Doncic makes the shot from the right side of the floor.
Doncic is on a list of stars who have borrowed the shot from the Mavericks legend. Doncic was sent to study by Shammgod, one of the creators of the clips, and he is included in that as well.
The one-legged fadeaway is a respected part of Doncic's game and he sometimes humiliates defenders who try to contest it. Doncic will catch them leaning and lead to a layup.
He's capable of getting a shot up if he needs to be more inventive.
"He's having fun with it, and that makes it hard to defend because you think you take one move away and there's no other move, no counter move, no nothing," says Mavs power forward/center Maxi Kleber. He spins out and shoots left-handed over his head, and he makes those shots.
During timeouts, Doncic will sometimes use his foot to balance the basketball with. He displays his background in that sport by dribbling the ball with his hands and changing direction with ease.
Steve Nash is an example of a basketball player who plays soccer, according to Shammgod. Luka is similar to that. The man is shifty. His brakes are good.
People get caught up in the hands and don't think about that. There are people on And 1 who can dribble and all that, but you put them in the game and they can't go nowhere. You are stuck in one place.
It's more about your feet. The hands are not a real thing.
Doncic is referred to as "quicker than you think," and the threat of his stepback helps him gain a half-step advantage on his opponent. It's hard for a defender to recover after that.
Kidd said that he knows how to use his body.
Shammgod says that Harden was the same way. You can't do anything after you're on the side of him. Doncic can score a lot of points. He's too powerful.
When he's backing down his opponent, Doncic can slither through traffic with his shiftiness. He uses his strength to create pockets of space when he's going up to finish.
Doncic said that you have to use the contact. It's a huge advantage if you use the contact correctly.
Doncic has a mix of power, soft touch and deceptiveness that makes him an elite scorer. Doncic was second among 43 guards with at least 150 buckets in that range, converting 69.9% of his attempts within five feet of the rim.
"It's amazing how he knows how to let someone fly by when he's going for a layup, and how often he shifts gears to allow traffic to clear in the paint," Kidd said.
Shammgod says that when he plays the only thing he hears is the music in his head. He doesn't care how fast the game is going. You are moving so fast that his slow is fast. He's not at the spot yet so it's easy for you to change directions.
He's always in a good place.
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