Luka Doncic wasn’t going to let the Dallas Mavericks go down quietly. With Dallas facing a 3-0 deficit in the NBA Finals, Doncic rose to the occasion and led the Mavericks to a 122-84 shellacking of the Boston Celtics on Friday night, June 14, in Game 4 on his home court. Doncic went for 29 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals, a performance that virtually erased a fourth-quarter collapse in Game 3 that subjected the Dallas star to scrutiny from media across the country.
In that game, the Mavericks trailed by 21 following a Derrick White three-pointer with 11:07 left in the game before mounting a feverish rally that got them within 93-90 with 6:11 to go. But with 4:12 remaining, Doncic stepped in front of Jaylen Brown to try and draw a charge and was called for a blocking foul – his sixth personal. Dallas challenged the call, which stood, sending Doncic to the bench for the remainder of the contest.
Doncic committed four of his fouls in the final quarter. Kyrie Irving later sank a jumper to make it a one-point game, but without Doncic, the Mavericks never found a way to move in front, leading to the 3-0 series deficit. In Dallas coach Jason Kidd’s eyes, a lot of the criticism was unwarranted, and Doncic proved why on Friday.
“He was Luka. He’s been Luka. There wasn’t a different Luka out there,” Kidd said following Game 4.
“He played at a high level. He was great. He’s been great.
He’s one of the best players in the world. As much as we want to crit.
