Luka Doncic

Southwest Notes: Sochan, Kyrie, Lively, Chandler, Rockets

October 13th, 2023 at 2:04pm CST by Luke Adams

No Spurs frontcourt player has appeared in all 82 games in a season since DeJuan Blair did it in 2009/10, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscription required). Second-year forward Jeremy Sochan, who welcomed the NBA’s declaration that its data doesn’t support load management, is hoping to end that streak.

“I think it should be a culture of playing every game that you can, and if your body is not 100%, then I understand,” Sochan said, per Orsborn. “But if you are fit and healthy, I don’t see why not playing 82 games or as many games as you can play.”

Appearing in all 82 games in 2023/24 would represent a major step forward for Sochan, who was limited to 56 contests as rookie due in large part to quad and knee issues.

Here are a few more notes from around the Southwest:

While his Mavericks backcourt mate Luka Doncic placed fourth overall in ESPN’s annual rankings of the NBA’s top players, Kyrie Irving isn’t putting much stock in the decisions made by ESPN’s panel, which ranked him 34th. “Rankings don’t mean a damn thing in the league, especially not from ESPN or any of these other media platforms,” Irving wrote in an Instagram comment (hat tip to The Dallas Morning News). “Majority of the analysts are not credible sources in my eyes and I don’t respect them or their opinions.”
Former Mavericks big man Tyson Chandler is working with rookie Dereck Lively II, referring to the young center as a “little brother,” according to Brad Towsend of The Dallas Morning News. Lively is welcoming the mentorship of Chandler, who is back for a third year as a part-time assistant in Dallas. “At first I wasn’t really familiar with Tyson’s game, until I started to do my homework,” Lively said. “Then I realized, ‘Wow, we really do play the same.’ We have the same demeanor. He’s 40-something and he has the same energy as me. We kind of reflect off of one another, you know?”
While the Rockets are hoping that veteran additions like Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks help the team take a step forward this season, they’re also counting on reaping the benefits of “trading” the rookie versions of Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason for more seasoned second-year versions of those players, says Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required). “They had an opportunity last year to play through mistakes and I think they’re obviously going to take a natural step,” head coach Ime Udoka said of the duo. “They’ve shown that.”

Mavs Notes: Doncic, Preseason, Holmes, Powell, THJ

October 11th, 2023 at 11:16am CST by Luke Adams

Ahead of the Mavericks‘ exhibition game against Real Madrid on Tuesday, the team told Bally Sports Southwest that Luka Doncic would be limited to about five minutes of playing time due to a left calf strain. According to Marc Stein (Twitter link), Doncic “desperately” wanted to play more than that against his old team in Spain, but the Mavs opted to be “ultra-cautious” with its franchise player.

After the game, Dallas’ third consecutive preseason loss, Doncic told reporters that the injury is “nothing serious.” Still, as Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News writes, the Mavs are returning home from their three-game trip to Abu Dhabi and Spain with more questions than answers — due to Doncic’s calf injury and a groin strain for Kyrie Irving, the team hasn’t gotten to see its star backcourt play together much and hasn’t been able to assess how its new role players fit alongside Luka and Kyrie.

The Mavericks have more than a week off before they play their final preseason game on October 20, so the hope is that they’ll have a healthier roster by that point and will be able to get a longer look at their lineup before the regular season tips off.

Here’s more on the Mavs:

Because the Mavericks were permitted to start training camp three days early due to their international trip, they’ll be required to have three non-practice days upon returning to Dallas on Thursday, Dwain Price writes at Mavs.com. While players can complete individual workouts, the team won’t have a full practice again until Monday.
Richaun Holmes ended up with the Mavericks this offseason as part of a salary-dump trade that sent a first-round pick along with him from Sacramento to Dallas. However, Holmes should get a chance to vie for rotation minutes and he’s looking forward to being part of a franchise he has long admired, according to Price. “I think this has always been a place or organization that I’ve loved since I was a basketball fan coming up,” Holmes said. “So, to actually be here and see this place and see the Dirk (Nowitzki) statue outside, it’s truly amazing.”
Long-tenured Mavericks Dwight Powell and Tim Hardaway Jr. had great success as a three-man unit with Doncic last season, according to Tim Cato of The Athletic, who notes that lineups featuring that trio outscored opponents by 11 points per 100 possessions. Still, in order for Dallas to take its next step toward legitimate contention, the team will likely need to eventually find upgrades on Powell and Hardaway, as Cato details.

Southwest Notes: Eason, Doncic, Cissoko, Rose

October 10th, 2023 at 10:48am CST by Luke Adams

Dillon Brooks, who said last month that he thinks he’s the NBA’s best defensive player, isn’t the only Rockets player with a tremendous amount of confidence in his abilities on that end of the floor. Tari Eason, entering his second season in the league, has expressed some lofty goals of his own, per Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required).

“I want to be the best defender in the NBA at some point,” Eason said. “I truly believe I can be. I will be. I just got to work, and the rest will fall into place. As far as effort and taking pride on that end of the floor, that’s kind of my calling card. I want to be the best defender I can be.”

Improving a defense that ranked 29th in the NBA last season has been a priority for new head coach Ime Udoka and the Rockets this fall as they focus on communicating more effectively on that side of the floor. Eason has noticed a difference in training camp.

“There are still some things we got to fully hash out, but I think we’re getting there,” Eason said. “The strides were made as far as communication. Last year, a lot of our defensive deficiencies come from us not being able to communicate, which also comes from us being young. With the mix of veterans and I guess the mentality coming in this year — we’ve all bought into the system — defensively we took a lot of leaps in terms of communication, knowing where to be and a willingness to want to get better on that end of the floor.”

Here are a few more items from around the Southwest:

Ahead of the Mavericks‘ exhibition game on Tuesday against Real Madrid, star guard Luka Doncic had nothing but praise for the Spanish club, citing the impact Real Madrid had on his career development, notes Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. Doncic played for the club from 2015-18, earning three Spanish League titles and a EuroLeague championship during that time. “I’ve got a lot of great memories and I’m happy to be back,” Doncic said. “If I return to Europe one day, I’m sure it will be to Real Madrid. That’s 100%.”
Spurs second-round pick Sidy Cissoko signed a standard contract this summer rather than a two-way deal, but the plan is for the French wing to spend the bulk of his rookie season in the G League, head coach Gregg Popovich told reporters on Monday (Twitter link via Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News).
Veteran point guard Derrick Rose was a standout on Sunday in the Grizzlies‘ preseason opener, racking up 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting in just 14 minutes as the club beat Indiana in overtime. Rose’s new teammates aren’t surprised that the former MVP is showing he still has something left in the tank, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. “We’ve been seeing it,” Ziaire Williams said. “When I say he’s still so fast, bro, that burst is there. I’m sure it was probably faster 10 years ago, which is insane to think about. He’s a talented player and a better person.”

Mavericks Notes: Green, Doncic, Kidd, Kyrie, Curry

September 29th, 2023 at 10:54pm CST by Rory Maher

Fourth-year wing Josh Green is entering the final year of his rookie contract with the Mavericks. The former first-round pick is eligible for a rookie scale extension until October 23, which is the day before the regular season begins.

Marc Stein reported last month that the Mavericks had opened extension talks with Green, but an agreement has yet to be reached.

Speaking to the media on Friday, Green said he hopes to reach a long-term deal, as Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News relays.

“At the end of the day, I know I want to be here,” Green said. “I’m going to work as if I’m going to be here for a long time. I want to be able to win in Dallas; I want to be in Dallas.

“Whatever their decision is their decision, but at the end of the day I’ve got the same goal every single day and that’s to be the best teammate and the best player I can be for the team.”

If Green doesn’t sign an extension, he’ll be eligible for restricted free agency next summer.

Here’s more on the Mavs:

Star Luka Doncic said he’s still not exactly sure what’s wrong with his nagging thigh injury, which bothered him last season and lingered into this summer’s World Cup. “It’s better, but we still have some appointments,” Doncic said, per Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. “So when we get the clear ‘What is it?,’ we’ll let you guys know.” When asked if he would be a full participant in training camp, which started Wednesday because the team is traveling overseas, Doncic said he might speak to the trainer about skipping “some stuff” due to two-a-days. However, according to Townsend, head coach Jason Kidd expected Doncic to be present for everything, despite being less than 100%. “And so the topic of getting him stronger, and getting him close to 100% before the first game is the goal,” Kidd said. “And so to answer the second part, yes, he will participate in two-a-days.”
Doncic also said he’s looking forward to building more chemistry with Kyrie Irving, who re-signed with Dallas this offseason after being acquired at the February trade deadline, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. “I mean better for sure,” Doncic said. “He came in the middle of the season last year, and we didn’t have much time. We went straight to playing games. It takes time to do chemistry, especially on the court, so we didn’t have the whole training camp and then I mean the preseason too. So I think it’s going to be way better.”
Speaking of Irving, he discussed why he decided to return to the Mavs in free agency, MacMahon writes in another article for ESPN. “It wasn’t too difficult of a process,” said Irving, who signed a three-year, $120MM+ deal. “Had Dallas as No. 1 on my list. Obviously I looked elsewhere — salary cap opportunities, where I could fit in with other guys around the league — but there just wasn’t much space. And me being 31 now, I had to have a different vantage point, and I felt like I could not just settle here but be happy to come back here and be welcomed back with a warm embrace.”
Veteran sharpshooter Seth Curry, who signed a two-year, $8MM deal with the Mavs in free agency, is also happy to be back in Dallas, per Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com. This is Curry’s third stint with the team. “A lot of potential, a lot of talent – top to bottom, a lot of guys that can play,” he said. “It’s about putting it together. Offensively, we should have one of the best rosters in the league. It’s about getting timely stops on defense.”

Atlantic Notes: Nets, Giannis, Hart, Harden

September 23rd, 2023 at 9:38pm CST by Arthur Hill

For the first time in years, the Nets will report to training camp without a superstar on their roster, but they have plenty of assets ready for when the next one becomes available, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Brooklyn is in a transition phase after shipping out Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in separate deals last February. Those trades gave the team a foundation built around Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson, along with a parcel of draft assets that can match any team in the league.

The Nets have seven tradable first-round picks through 2030, along with four others that could be involved in swaps. They own unprotected firsts from the Suns in 2027 and 2029 and one from the Mavericks in 2029. Lewis points out that those picks could greatly increase in value as the core in Phoenix becomes older and especially if Irving and Luka Doncic eventually decide to leave Dallas.

Lewis doesn’t expect Brooklyn to use any of its assets to chase players who are currently on the market such as Damian Lillard, Tyler Herro or James Harden. The front office wants to be fully stocked in case a major star such as Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid, Donovan Mitchell or Doncic eventually becomes available.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

The Knicks risk missing out on other opportunities if they decide to wait for the possibility of an Antetokounmpo trade, Ian Begley of SNY.tv states in a mailbag column. He points to Raptors forward OG Anunoby as an example of a useful talent who might be available through trade, but New York can’t make a bid for him if the front office is determined to preserve its assets for a run at Antetokounmpo. Begley also notes that Antetokounmpo could ultimately decide to stay in Milwaukee or force his way to another team.
The Knicks appear to have Josh Hart penciled in as their backup power forward, Begley adds. New York hasn’t signed anyone to replace Obi Toppin after trading him to Indiana, and using Hart in that role could open up playing time for free agent addition Ryan Arcidiacono.
The attention being focused on a potential Lillard deal is holding up any progress the Sixers could be making on a Harden trade, Derek Bodner states on the latest PHLY Sports podcast. Philadelphia talked to the Trail Blazers about a Lillard deal this summer, Kyle Neubeck adds, but he cautions that doesn’t mean the teams were ever close to a deal.

Super-Max Candidates To Watch In 2023/24

September 14th, 2023 at 7:30am CST by Luke Adams

Note: This is an updated version of an article that was sent exclusively to our Trade Rumors Front Office subscribers in June. Click here for more information on Trade Rumors Front Office.

The NBA’s Designated Veteran rule, as we explain in our glossary entry on the subject, allows players to qualify for a maximum salary worth 35% of the cap before they gain the required NBA service time.

Typically, a player is ineligible to receive a maximum contract that starts at 35% of the cap until he has at least 10 years of experience, but the Designated Veteran rule gives a player with between seven and nine years of experience the opportunity to do so if he meets certain performance criteria. This has become colloquially known as signing a “super-max” deal.

The performance criteria are as follows (only one of the following must be true):

The player was named to an All-NBA team and/or was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year in the most recent season, or in two of the last three seasons.
The player was named the NBA MVP in any of the three most recent seasons.

Since the NBA introduced the concept of the Designated Veteran contract in 2017, 12 players have signed them across seven offseasons. Celtics wing Jaylen Brown became the latest player to join that group this summer when he signed a five-year super-max deal that could become the NBA’s first $300MM contract.

Brown will be the only player who signs such a contract this offseason, but it’s worth taking a peek down the road to see which players are the best candidates to join the list of super-max recipients in 2024 and 2025.

We can start by penciling in another Celtic, Jayson Tatum, for 2024. Although he doesn’t yet have enough years of NBA service to sign a Designated Veteran extension, Tatum met the performance criteria in the spring by earning his second consecutive All-NBA berth.

That means that even if he doesn’t make an All-NBA team in 2024, he’ll have received an All-NBA nod in two of the previous three seasons when he meets the service time criteria next summer, making him super-max eligible. It seems likely the Celtics will offer him a Designated Veteran extension at that time.

Here are some other candidates to watch during the 2023/24 season:

2024

Bam Adebayo (Heat)
De’Aaron Fox (Kings)
Brandon Ingram (Pelicans)
Jamal Murray (Nuggets)
Pascal Siakam (Raptors)

Because a player become ineligible for a Designated Veteran extension if he’s traded after his first four years in the NBA, prime candidates like Donovan Mitchell and Domantas Sabonis won’t be able to qualify. Still, there’s an intriguing group of candidates in play for next summer.

Ingram, Murray, and Siakam, members of the 2016 draft class, would have become super-max eligible if they had made an All-NBA team this year. They’ll get another chance in 2024.

Ingram averaged a career-best 24.7 points and 5.8 assists per night in 2022/23, but injuries limited him to just 45 games. While he’s not one of the best 15 players in the NBA, it’s not impossible to imagine the 26-year-old earning an All-NBA spot if he stays healthy and helps lead the Pelicans to a top-four seed in the West. He’s probably a long shot, but we can’t rule him out entirely.

Murray was making his way back from an ACL tear last season, which meant he was subject to load management and wasn’t necessarily at his best from day one. But his postseason performance – 26.1 points per game on .473/.396/.926 shooting en route to a championship – served as a reminder that he has All-NBA upside.

Siakam made the All-NBA Second Team in 2020 and the Third Team in 2022 and received some votes in 2023. However, he still needs one more All-NBA nod in 2024 to become eligible for a Designated Veteran deal. He’ll be a candidate to watch as long as he remains in Toronto for the 2023/24 season. A trade – which would make him ineligible – still looms as a possibility.

Adebayo and Fox are 2017 draftees with just six years of NBA experience, which means that Fox didn’t meet the Designated Veteran performance criteria by earning All-NBA honors in May — he’ll need to do it again in 2024 to qualify for a super-max deal. His performance this past year showed that he’s capable of it.

Adebayo’s path to an All-NBA berth is complicated by the fact that the All-NBA teams will become positionless beginning in 2024. That means voters won’t necessarily have to choose three centers, which may reduce his odds of making the cut.

Still, the field of All-NBA candidates may be more wide open than usual in 2024, since the league is also requiring players to appear in at least 65 games in order to be eligible for one of the 15 spots. That means a player who misses a few weeks with an injury might be out of the running. If Ingram, Murray, Siakam, Fox, and Abebayo can stay healthy and play at least 65 times, their All-NBA odds will increase.

It’s worth noting too that being named Defensive Player of the Year is another way to qualify for a super-max. Adebayo has finished in the top five in voting for that award in each of the last four seasons and is a legitimate candidate to win it at some point.

2025

Luka Doncic (Mavericks)
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Thunder)
Jaren Jackson Jr. (Grizzlies)

Doncic, Gilgeous-Alexander, and Jackson were drafted in 2018 and have just five years of NBA experience, so they’re still two years away from having the service time required for a Designated Veteran contract — none of them would be able to sign a super-max extension until 2025. However, they all have an opportunity to meet the performance criteria in 2024.

Doncic and Gilgeous-Alexander made up the All-NBA First Team backcourt in 2023, so if they make an All-NBA team again next year, they’ll have done so in at least two of the three years leading up to the 2025 offseason.

As for Jackson, he missed out on All-NBA honors in 2023, but was the league’s Defensive Player of the Year. It’s a tall order, but if he can win a second DPOY award in either of the next two seasons, he’ll make himself eligible to sign a super-max contract in 2025.

The rookie scale extension recipients

LaMelo Ball (Hornets)
Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)
Tyrese Haliburton (Pacers)

Ball, Edwards, and Haliburton have all signed five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extensions this offseason that project to start at 25% of the 2024/25 cap. If we assume the cap will rise by the maximum allowable 10%, those deals would be worth just shy of $217MM.

However, all three extensions include Rose Rule language. This is another form of the super-max — we can call it the “mini” super-max, paradoxical as that may sound. Unlike a player who signs a Designated Veteran contract, which starts at 35% of the cap instead of 30%, a player who meets the Rose Rule criteria can receive a starting salary worth 30% of the cap rather than 25%.

The performance criteria for a Rose Rule salary increase are essentially the exact same as for a Designated Veteran bump, but must be achieved by the end of the player’s four-year rookie contract. That means Ball, Edwards, and Haliburton would have to make the All-NBA team in 2024 in order to increase the projected value of their respective extensions to $260MM over five years — an All-NBA berth in 2025 or 2026 would be too late.

Each of these three players has an All-Star berth under his belt, so making the leap to All-NBA certainly isn’t inconceivable. Edwards may be the best bet of the three to qualify for the mini super-max, but if Ball and Haliburton can lead their teams to playoff spots, they’d certainly have a case.

World Cup Notes: F. Wagner, Schröder, Top Players, Banchi

September 11th, 2023 at 10:28am CST by Arthur Hill

Germany’s Franz Wagner was thrilled not only to win a gold medal at the World Cup, but to be able to accomplish the feat while playing alongside his brother, writes Cesare Milanti of EuroHoops. Franz and Moritz Wagner are also teammates on the Magic, but their undefeated run through the World Cup field is the highlight of their careers.

“It’s special,” Franz Wagner said after Sunday’s win over Serbia. “Special to have our parents here too. This is so surreal, it doesn’t make sense that we are both on this team and we can enjoy it.”

Wagner appears to be fully recovered from a sprained ankle he suffered in Germany’s opening game. Although he missed the rest of pool play, he was back for the knockout round, scoring 22 points and grabbing five rebounds in a semifinal win over Team USA, then posting 19 points and seven rebounds in the gold medal contest.

“There were so many moments this year in so many games that the other team made a run, this game, the game before against the States,” he added. “We never let it slip, we just kept playing and kept staying together. That made a huge difference in all these games.”

There’s more from the World Cup:

Tournament MVP Dennis Schröder hopes Germany’s success will lead to more exposure for basketball in his home country, per Aris Barkas of Eurohoops. The German team has become more successful in international competitions, but the games aren’t widely available to the public. “We first thought the tournament was going to be on the TV. Only the final was on the TV,” Schröder said. “Basketball is a great sport and I hope we can get our respect for what we are doing the last two years. I wish that every single game is on TV. Ten years ago when I started, we had Dirk Nowitzki but nobody knew who were the other guys on the team. Now we go to Japan and the Philippines and they know us. We hope to get this respect also in our country and get recognized.”
Schröder was a first-team selection by Brian Windhorst of ESPN on his list of the best players at the World Cup. Joining him on the first team are Team USA’s Anthony Edwards, Canada’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Slovenina’s Luka Doncic and Serbia’s Bogdan Bogdanovic. Making up Windhorst’s second team are the USA’s Mikal Bridges, Australia’s Josh Giddey, South Sudan’s Carlik Jones, Serbia’s Nikola Milutinov and the Dominican Republic’s Karl-Anthony Towns.
Luca Banchi was honored as the tournament’s best coach after leading Latvia to a fifth-place finish in its first-ever World Cup.

Western Notes: Doncic, Tenzer, Watson, McGee, Len, Spurs

September 10th, 2023 at 8:58pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Luka Doncic isn’t doing himself any favors with his constant complaining to the officials, Tim Cato of The Athletic writes. The Mavericks superstar was tossed from Slovenia’s quarterfinal loss to Canada in the FIBA World Cup. Doncic’s technical fouls in the NBA have risen in each of his five seasons. Cato notes. Doncic has publicly acknowledged over the years he needs to pipe down, but his actions haven’t reflected it. He’s a master at drawing contact but complaining about non-calls serves no useful purpose, as Cato writes.

We have more from the Western Conference:

The Nuggets’ new G League general manager, Ben Tenzer, believes forward Peyton Watson will blossom in his second NBA season, he told Bennett Durando of the Denver Post. “(He) has all the potential in the world. I think it starts with his defense and his energy,” Tenzer said. “He’s such a unique player with his size and his ability to cover the court. His shot-blocking ability. I think we were able to see it a little bit when he played with the Nuggets toward the end of the season, how good he can be. So I think for him it starts with the defensive side. The offensive side will come because of his natural ability to be able to handle and attack the rim.”
Alex Len and JaVale McGee are expected to make the Kings’ opening night roster and compete for backup minutes at center, James Ham of TheKingsBeat.com tweets. That doesn’t come as much of a surprise, considering they both have guaranteed contracts. That also means Neemias Queta and Nerlens Noel, who have partially guaranteed deals, will essentially be competing for the final roster spot, assuming Sacramento decides to carry 15 players.
The Spurs have 18 players on guaranteed or partially guaranteed deals. So who will be the odd men out? The Athletic’s John Hollinger and Kelly Iko explore that, plus other Spurs-related topics. Khem Birch and Charles Bassey appear to be the most vulnerable, according to Hollinger. If San Antonio is unable to deal one of its guards, then either Doug McDermott, Reggie Bullock or Cedi Osman could be bought out.

Germany Wins Gold Medal, USA Fourth At World Cup

September 10th, 2023 at 10:29am CST by Arthur Hill

Germany wrapped up an undefeated World Cup by topping Serbia, 83-77, in Sunday’s gold medal game. Team USA, which had been favored to win the gold, left without a medal after falling to Canada in an overtime thriller in the bronze medal contest.

Dennis Schröder led the Germans with 28 points in the finals and Franz Wagner added 19. Germany was able to take down all challengers in the tournament despite playing much of it without Wagner, who suffered a sprained ankle in the opener against Japan.

Schröder was named World Cup MVP (Twitter link) and was joined on the All-Star 5 by Canada’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, USA’s Anthony Edwards, Serbia’s Bogdan Bogdanovic and Slovenia’s Luka Doncic (Twitter link).

Canada’s victory was noteworthy as it marked the nation’s first-ever medal in World Cup competition and only its second win against the U.S. in a senior men’s tournament. The Canadians were led by 31 points and 12 assists from Gilgeous-Alexander and 39 points from Dillon Brooks, who continues to rebuild his reputation following a playoff embarrassment and an unpleasant separation with the Grizzlies in free agency.

“It was so enjoyable. Obviously the hate doesn’t stop, it keeps going,” Brooks told reporters, including Brian Windhorst of ESPN. “It’s hard to battle against the world and a team.”

Before earning their medals, the Canadians had to survive a miracle finish from Team USA that sent the game to overtime. Trailing by four points with 4.2 seconds remaining, Mikal Bridges hit his first free throw and purposely missed the second before chasing down the rebound in the right corner and hitting a spinning three-pointer with 0.6 left on the clock. Bridges, who scored 19 points and battled Gilgeous-Alexander on defense, may be one of the members of the World Cup roster with a strong chance of returning for the Olympics.

However, Canada controlled play in the overtime to capture a 127-118 victory that sent the U.S. home without a medal for the second straight World Cup. The Americans dropped three of their last four games as defense and rebounding became persistent issues.

“We just didn’t defend well enough against Germany (in the semifinals) or against Canada, and that’s the bottom line,” coach Steve Kerr said. “Every year when you try to build a team, you try to build the best two-way team you can and be able to get stops and score, and everybody’s trying to do that.”

Windhorst points out that the Americans have now lost seven combined games over their last three major tournaments, creating a wide open race for the gold at the Paris Olympics next summer. The U.S. may have to reconsider the type of players it wants to invite, although Kerr said USA Basketball officials felt good about the World Cup roster they put together.

“We’ve really studied everything about FIBA and the history of United States basketball when we’ve won, what has been the reason and when we’ve lost what has been the reason,” Kerr said. “So we study all that stuff, and what it comes down to for us in this tournament, we put ourselves in a great position. We got to the semifinals and were right there.”

Luka Doncic Played Through Thigh Injury At World Cup

September 9th, 2023 at 4:05pm CST by Rory Maher

Mavericks star and Slovenian captain Luka Doncic played through a thigh injury at the World Cup, he told reporters following Thursday’s loss to Lithuania.

“I do not know what to say,” Doncic said, according to Eurhoops. “It’s not okay. At the same time, I have to prepare for one more game, and then for a whole season in the NBA.”

The All-NBA guard said last month that he had an MRI to get the injury checked out.

“It is an old injury, which caused me problems in March in the NBA,” Doncic said. “Therefore, we performed an MRI. Everything is okay. Nothing worse.”

It’s troubling that Doncic, 24, is still dealing with lingering effects from the thigh strain he sustained late in the 2022/23 season. His March MRI was clean, and he wound up missing five games.

Oddly, Doncic played a tournament-high 37 minutes against Lithuania less than 24 hours after losing in the quarterfinals to Canada, notes Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews. The game was basically meaningless, as both teams had already been eliminated from medal contention and couldn’t qualify for the Olympics.

“The answer is very simple. It’s because Luka is very competitive,” head coach Aleksander Sekulic responded to BasketNews when asked about Doncic’s motivation for the game.

“I don’t know where he found energy, but he said he feels great and wanted to play,” Sekulic added. “He’s our best man regarding energy. He was trying to motivate everybody and put everybody on another level. I think we were not on the level we wanted to be, but he tried hard in the game, timeouts, and locker room. He tried all the time to push them to their limits. But that’s why he played because he felt good.

“This shows his character and that he loves basketball. That also shows a lot of how serious he is when he plays for his country and that he plays with his heart.”

Perhaps that explains why Doncic played one additional minute — 38 — as Slovenia defeated Italy on Saturday to finish seventh place.

Despite the injury, Doncic still put up his typical gaudy stats at the tournament, averaging 27.0 points, 7.1 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 2.5 steals in 32.2 minutes. However, he also struggled with turnovers, committing 4.3 per contest.

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