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Luka Doncic watched the last 4:12 minutes of the fourth quarter in Game 3 of the NBA Finals from the sidelines. The Dallas Mavericks were about to complete a 22-2 run in the fourth quarter to trail by 93-92 behind Kyrie Irving’s 17-foot jumper. However, Dallas failed to overhaul the deficit and went on to lose 106-99, dropping to 3-0 in the championship round.
Through three games, the Slovenian averages 29.7 points on 47.3% shooting, including 32.1% from deep. The fourth quarters in the series, however, have been eye-opening. Doncic has scored a total of eight points behind 3-for-15 shooting. He missed all four attempts from deep during the stretch.
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Fans on X/Twitter, promptly responded to Luka Doncic’s poor numbers in the fourth quarters of the NBA Finals:
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“Luka doncic is James harden 2.0 the sooner people realize this the better he is not the future”
One fan pointed out that another superstar had the same struggles in the finals:
“He's having his Miami Bron moment. This is his cannon event”
Another fan already declared:
“We are witnessing one of the biggest finals chokes in nba history”
@johntaylor30 gave the reason for Luka Doncic’s inefficient stats:
“when he’s foul hunting and not getting the calls….. you get these numbers!!!”
Doncic is coming off a Western Conference finals where he looked unstoppable, particularly in fourth quarters. Minnesota had an elite defense but “Luka Magic” had an answer to everything they threw at him. He couldn’t replicate the same performances against the Boston Celtics.
Celtics’ strategy on both ends of the floor has caused Luka Doncic to struggle
The Minnesota Timberwolves had the best defense in the NBA this season but the Boston Celtics weren’t too far behind. Luka Doncic probably found the Timberwolves defense a better matchup for him than what the Celtics bring. He averaged 7.4 points on 52.4% efficiency, including a blistering 54.5% from past 22 feet against Minnesota in five fourth-quarter games.
Boston has four players who can give Doncic a tough time on defense. Jrue Holiday and Derrick White are members of the All-NBA Defensive team. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are no slouches on that end either. Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis have held up well when forced to switch to the league’s leading scorer. Xavier Tillman had moments shackling the Maverick's point guard.
On offense, the Boston Celtics consistently put pressure on Luka Doncic by attacking his defense. Tatum, Brown, Holiday and White never hesitate to drive to the rim when it is the Slovenian guarding them. Doncic’s struggles may have something to do with that strategy. In Game 3, he couldn’t even finish the game after committing his sixth foul with still 4:12 to go.
Doncic isn’t as bad as many of the comments suggested. But, he knows he is struggling and will have to step up to prevent the Celtics from bringing out the broom in Game 4.
