Luka Doncic Rumors | Hoops Rumors

NBA Finals Notes: Brown, Porzingis, Mavs’ Centers, Luka, Kyrie

June 8th, 2024 at 12:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Speaking to reporters during a media session on Saturday, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd referred to Jaylen Brown as the Celtics‘ “best player” when asked about the challenges of facing the Boston wing (Twitter video link).

“Well, Jaylen’s their best player,” Kidd said. “So just looking at what he does defensively, he picked up Luka (Doncic) full court, he got to the free throw line, he did everything. That’s what your best player does.”

You could certainly make a case that Brown has been the Celtics’ best player in this postseason — his 24.8 points per game during the playoffs rank slightly behind Jayson Tatum‘s 25.3 PPG, but he has got his points far more efficiently, shooting 54.3% from the floor and 36.6% on three-pointers, compared to 43.8% and 29.9% for Tatum.

Still, the general consensus is that Tatum – who has also averaged a team-high 10.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game in the postseason – is Boston’s best player, so Kidd’s comments raised some eyebrows. While they may reflect his honest opinion, it’s hard not to read Kidd’s praise of Brown as an attempt at gamesmanship, given that the relationship between the two Celtics stars has been a popular topic of speculation among outsiders over the years.

Here’s more on the NBA Finals, with Game 2 on tap for Sunday:

Given how well the Celtics played in Game 1 with Kristaps Porzingis coming off the bench, head coach Joe Mazzulla will face an interesting decision on whether to return the big man to his spot in the starting lineup on Sunday, writes Brian Robb of MassLive.com. As Robb notes, Boston played its best basketball with Porzingis on the court and could still manage his minutes over the course of the night if he starts. However, the team has gone 10-1 with Al Horford as its starting center during the playoffs and is riding an eight-game winning streak, so Mazzulla may not want to mess with what’s working.
Despite Mazzulla saying prior to Game 1 that Porzingis had no minutes limit, the big man told reporters on Saturday that he is in fact facing a minutes restriction (Twitter link via Souichi Terada of MassLive.com). Porzingis, who logged 21 minutes in Game 1, didn’t offer any specifics on that restriction.
Porzingis’ presence represents a major problem for the Mavericks, according to Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News, who says the Celtics’ floor-spacing centers essentially neutralized the impact of Dallas big men Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively, who had to chase Porzingis and Horford out to the perimeter rather than hanging back and protecting the rim. As Townsend points out, Gafford and Lively combined for just 10 points, eight rebounds, and no blocks on Thursday, while Porzingis and Horford totaled 30 points, 13 rebounds, and five blocks.
Doncic and Kyrie Irving were unable to beat their defenders one-on-one in Game 1, which would’ve forced the Celtics to send help and created open shots for teammates, writes John Hollinger of The Athletic. As a result, the two stars combined for just three assists, while the team as a whole had only nine. If that doesn’t change going forward and Doncic and Irving can’t do more in those one-on-one situations, it will likely be a quick series, Hollinger opines.

Mavericks Notes: Kidd, Doncic, Irving, Green, Porzingis

June 6th, 2024 at 9:15am CST by Dana Gauruder

Jason Kidd was fired as the Bucks’ head coach in 2018 and said that he grew from that experience. Kidd has now guided the Mavericks to the Finals after getting another shot as a head coach following stints in Brooklyn and Milwaukee.

“Coaching is not easy in this industry,” Kidd told Andscape’s Marc Spears. “There is always movement. There are only certain coaches who are cemented in their place — well-deserved, with Pop [Gregg Popovich], Spo [Erik Spoelstra]. After that, there has been a lot of movement. You just hope that you can win and do the right thing for as long as you can … The thing about being let go or fired was I wasn’t up to their standards. So, that’s how I thought about it. Then I thought what is the best way to get better.”

Kidd, who was given an extension after the regular season, said he learned from Popovich, Rick Carlisle and Frank Vogel in between his time with the Bucks and Mavs. He was a top assistant under Vogel with the Lakers.

“I’ve always given Frank his flowers for helping me understand better and seeing what things to worry about and what things not to worry about,” Kidd said. “What I learned from Frank was that the stars are going to be stars. There are a lot of things going on, but just really focus on what you can control. And I thought Frank did an incredible job with that.”

We have more on the Mavs:

Former head coach and current TV analyst Stan Van Gundy stirred a debate in the conference finals by calling Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving the best offensive backcourt in league history. Van Gundy isn’t backing down from that assertion. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a backcourt with two guys like that, who you can just give the ball to either one of them and then they can go create offense for you—for themselves or for their teammates,” Van Gundy told Howard Beck of The Ringer. Beck goes on an in-depth statistical journey to evaluate how the Mavs’ duo stacks up against other great backcourt tandems.
Josh Green has adjusted his game to complement Doncic and Irving, making sacrifices along the way, he told Olgun Uluc of ESPN. “Honestly, it’s a tough adjustment for anyone,” Green said. “But, I think for me personally, I want to win first. It took time to get used to it, and it took time for me to realise what I need to do to be out on the court. You can tell it’s appreciated from guys like Kyrie and Luka. They know the work that the role players put in. They know that it’s not like the role players can’t do more; but we have Luka and Kyrie and there’s certain things that we need to do in order for our team to win, and we’re willing to sacrifice for the team. That’s why we’re in the Finals.”
The love fest between LeBron James and Irving goes both ways. James stated on a podcast that “I’m so f—ing happy and so proud to watch him continue his growth. I’m so f—ing mad at the same time that I’m not his running mate anymore.” Irving said his relationship with the Lakers’ superstar has flourished in recent years. “Definitely miss him,” Irving said, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “Man, when he says comments like that, I think back to us having those moments where we’re down in a series, up in a series, we’re really demanding greatness from each other. Off the court, our families meshing well. … I definitely think about those times.”
After Doncic refuted a claim by former NBA player Chandler Parsons that he disliked playing with Kristaps Porzingis when they were teammates in Dallas, Porzingis weighed in on the topic too, telling reporters he has no ill will toward Doncic or his former teammates as he prepares to face them in the Finals, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN. “We had some good moments. We had some decent moments, but overall it just didn’t work for both sides. It wasn’t perfect. But I would say everything — teammates, locker room — I know at that time there were some rumors that there was something in the locker room. It was never like that. It was all just noise at the end,” Porzingis said. “It just wasn’t perfect for us playing together, and it didn’t work out. And that’s it. There’s no ill will, I don’t think from their side. For sure, [there is not] from my side. I don’t think there should be. It just didn’t work out, but I have nothing but love for Dallas and for my teammates and for everybody there.”

International Notes: Slovenia, Doncic, Croatia, South Sudan, Siulepa

June 5th, 2024 at 12:39pm CST by Luke Adams

The Slovenian national team has officially announced the 16 players who will make up its preliminary roster for the Olympic qualifying tournament in Greece next month (Twitter link). While the 16-man group features currently Nuggets forward Vlatko Cancar and a couple other players with prior NBA experience (Zoran Dragic and Mike Tobey), the headliner is Mavericks guard Luka Doncic.

Slovenia obviously hopes that Doncic will be available to help the team try to claim one of the final four Olympic berths this summer, and the Mavs star said on Wednesday that he wants to do so, despite battling knee issues this spring, as Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press tweets. Doncic still has one more series to get through, so his availability in Greece will presumably hinge on how he’s feeling at the conclusion of the NBA Finals.

Here’s more from around the international basketball world:

Croatia, which will be in Slovenia’s group at the qualifying tournament in Greece, has also announced a preliminary roster for that event. Warriors forward Dario Saric and Clippers center Ivica Zubac are among the 17 players who are candidates to make up the 12-man roster, while former NBA wing Mario Hezonja is one of the other notable names in that group.
South Sudan, which has already qualified for the Olympics based on its results at last year’s World Cup, revealed a 25-man preliminary roster for Paris (Twitter link). Some of the biggest names in the mix for roster spots include Bol Bol, Wenyen Gabriel, Thon Maker, JT Thor, and World Cup star Carlik Jones.
Seventeen-year-old Australian prospect Roman Siulepa is signing with the Tasmania JackJumpers as part of the National Basketball League’s Next Stars program, he tells Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Givony identifies Siulepa as one of the most promising international prospects in his age group, noting that the 6’7″ small forward has averaged 21.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game in the second division of Australia’s NBL this season.

Mavs Notes: Doncic, Porzingis, Lively, Dumont, Washington

June 4th, 2024 at 6:20pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Former NBA player Chandler Parsons stated on FanDuel’s Run It Back program that Luka Doncic did not like playing with Kristaps Porzingis when the two were Mavericks teammates from 2019-22.

That’s news to Doncic, who denied there was any friction between him and the current Celtics big man.

“They’re wrong. I’ve talked to Chandler Parsons maybe twice in my life, so I don’t know how he would know this,” he said, per Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News. “Me and KP have a good relationship. I don’t know why people say these things.”

We have more from the Mavericks:

Remember when the league fined the Mavericks $750K for resting players during the second-to-last game last season, when they were still in the play-in hunt? It was worth the fine, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon notes, as they wound up drafting Dereck Lively II in the lottery at No. 12 after trading down. Dallas needed to make swift moves to build around Doncic and Kyrie Irving and the Mavs struck gold in the draft. The tank job was a transparent attempt by the Mavs to hang on to the top-10-protected pick they owed the Knicks as the final payment on the Porzingis blockbuster deal.
Patrick Dumont, the franchise’s majority shareholder, knew the team could be a contender this season. But he had no idea the Mavs would be in the Finals when the purchase from Mark Cuban was approved by the league’s Board of Governors in late December. “No, we were just very happy and honored to be able to be here,” Dumont told Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News. “Like, we had no idea. But we knew this team would compete. And we’re very excited about the work they’ve put it in and the results. It’s phenomenal.”
P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford went from lottery teams prior to the trade deadline to now playing prominent roles on a Western Conference champion. Washington feels blessed to be in this position, he told Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com. “I’m pretty sure he (Gafford) didn’t expect to be here, just like I didn’t,” Washington said. “It’s a lot of emotions coming from Charlotte and not really winning a lot of games to being in the Finals in a matter of months. It’s a quick turnaround and we’re just extremely grateful. We’re not taking anything for granted. As a kid, I never thought I’d be in the position that I’m in now.”
Lively developed quicker than coach Jason Kidd expected, Sefko writes in a separate story. “When we got Lively, we felt it was going to fill one of the holes that Luka was looking for, a vertical guy,” Kidd said. “You could see the future of him being the anchor of the defense. The future just happened to come a lot faster. He wanted that responsibility. Sometimes, young players will shy away from that. But he ran to it.”

Mavericks Notes: Jones, Kidd, Irving, Gafford

June 3rd, 2024 at 10:40am CST by Arthur Hill

The decision to sign with the Mavericks last summer has given Derrick Jones Jr. a chance to play in the NBA Finals, but he could been there with either team, writes Brian Robb of MassLive. Jones confirmed to reporters on Sunday that he considered an offer from the Celtics before opting to go to Dallas.

Boston was looking for another wing to back up Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, but the Mavs gave Jones a chance to start and he has turned out to be a bargain on a one-year minimum deal. He will be back on the free agent market this summer and figures to earn a substantial raise after averaging a career-high 8.6 PPG in 76 games. He’ll more than make up for the money he lost when he decided to turn down a $3.3MM player option with the Bulls.

“I could have accepted my player option in Chicago and still be on the team that’s not in the playoffs right now,” Jones said. “I just decided to bet on myself. I took less money to come here, but the money wasn’t the problem. The money wasn’t the issue. I just wanted to have the opportunity to be on the floor and to showcase what I’m able to do, and it happened for me.”

There’s more from Dallas:

There was speculation that Jason Kidd might have been on the hot seat with an early playoff exit, but instead he’s in the NBA Finals and has a multiyear contract extension, notes Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. The Mavericks‘ head coach is grateful to general manager Nico Harrison and new team governor Patrick Dumont for having faith in what he’s trying to build. “And for Nico and Patrick to see that with the extension before we even got past the first round,” Kidd said. “Understanding that they believed in what I could do, and they saw the impact I had on the guys. … It’s definitely a vote of confidence. I actually believed I was doing the right thing. If you looked at our roster, it got better. We all got better.”
Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports examines the career paths of Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving and Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis, noting there was a time where they were nearly traded for each other. It happened before the 2019 deadline, when Irving was near the end of his tenure in Boston and New York was starting to explore deals involving Porzingis. The Mavericks killed the potential trade by offering the Knicks two first-round picks in exchange for Porzingis. Fischer also notes that the Celtics weren’t on Irving’s original list when he asked to be traded out of Cleveland. The Spurs, Knicks, Timberwolves and Heat were his preferred destinations.
Daniel Gafford had exploratory talks about joining the Slovenian national team as a naturalized player, but that won’t happen this summer, sources tell Marc Stein (Substack link). Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney will be part of Slovenia’s coaching staff for an Olympic qualifying tournament next month, and while Luka Doncic is expected to play, he won’t discuss his plans until the playoffs are done.
TNT analyst and former head coach Stan Van Gundy isn’t backing down from his claim that Irving and Doncic are “arguably the best offensive backcourt in the history of the NBA,” according to Howard Beck of The Ringer. Beck compares them to some historically great guard tandems to see how they stack up.

Mavericks Notes: Playoff Success, Irving, Doncic, Finals Matchup

May 31st, 2024 at 11:58am CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks didn’t mind being under the radar when the playoffs started, writes Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. Dallas didn’t get much notice after going 50-32 and finishing as the No. 5 seed in the West, but the team was much more dangerous than its record indicated. The Mavs closed the regular season on a 15-1 run and were fully confident heading into the postseason, as Kyrie Irving explained after the team punched its ticket to the NBA Finals Thursday night.

“We’ve grown over the past few months,” Irving said. “This has been a journey for us. I like to think that being fifth took some pressure off of us coming into this postseason. Everybody was looking at the top three seeds, so I felt like we snuck in there a little bit and surprised a few teams. But the guys in the locker room have always had that utmost confidence in one another.”

The Mavericks’ journey from a lottery team last season to potential NBA champs was punctuated by a pair of deadline deals in February that brought in Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington. Combined with the addition of Dereck Lively II in last year’s draft, that created a versatile supporting cast around Irving and Luka Doncic.

“If you look at our regular season, I don’t think it tells the whole truth of who we are — or who we were,” Irving added. “I felt like the second half of the season, everybody got to kind of see what we were made of.”

There’s more on the Mavericks:

Minority team owner Mark Cuban believes Dallas was able to rejuvenate Irving “by listening to him and not telling him,” Marc Stein notes in a Substack column. There were plenty of doubters when the Mavs traded for Irving in February 2023 and again when they re-signed him last summer, but he and Doncic have figured out how to be successful together. The organization has created an ideal environment for Irving, Stein adds. Jason Kidd is a head coach he respects, general manger Nico Harrison was Irving’s longtime business partner at Nike, assistant coach God Shammgod is a close friend who works with Irving every day, and Markieff Morris is a trusted teammate who provides emotional support.
Doncic took control early in Game 5 and sent a message that the Mavericks were ready to close out the series, observes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. He finished with 36 points, his highest-scoring game of the playoffs, and 10 of those came in the first 2:33 of action. “It was Luka magic mode,” Kidd said. “He set the tone, and then he made it easier for everyone else. Everybody else stepped up.”
The Celtics will present a fresh matchup problem for the Mavericks in the Finals, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic. Hollinger points out that Dallas likes to keep its centers close to the basket, even if that means giving up three-point shots to opposing big men, but that’s a risky strategy against Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford.

Luka Doncic Earns Western Finals MVP

May 30th, 2024 at 10:08pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Mavericks All-Star guard Luka Doncic has been named the Most Valuable Player of the Western Conference Finals, winning this year’s Earvin “Magic” Johnson Trophy, the NBA has announced (via Twitter).

Doncic was the unanimous choice, earning all nine media votes for the honor, the league revealed (Twitter link).

The 6’7″ guard just put the finishing touches on a five-game series win over the higher-seeded Timberwolves, scoring 36 points — including 20 in the first quarter — on 14-of-27 shooting from the floor in Thursday’s 124-103 Game 5 blowout victory. For good measure, Doncic logged 10 rebounds, five assists, a steal, and a +22 plus-minus. All-Star backcourt mate Kyrie Irving also finished with 36 points.

With the victory, Dallas advances to its first NBA Finals since 2011, when Doncic was 12 years old and current head coach Jason Kidd was the team’s starting point guard.

Through 17 playoff games so far, Doncic is averaging 28.8 points on a .438/.343/.806 slash line. He’s also chipping in 9.6 rebounds, 8.8 dimes, 1.6 steals and 0.5 blocks a night.

According to The Athletic (via Twitter), Doncic is the first player in the history of the league to rack up 150+ rebounds and assists and 50+ three-point field goals during one playoff run.

Though all but the last of the games vs. Minnesota were fairly close, Doncic and Irving’s clutch play, both as isolation scorers and as tactical distributors, helped Dallas pull away late in every instance except the Game 4 loss.

At 50-32, Dallas entered the West playoffs as the No. 5 seed, meaning it was an underdog, without home court advantage, in each of its three postseason matchups. That made little difference, as the club took care of the No. 4 Clippers and the No. 1 Thunder in six games apiece, across successive rounds, before moving on to handle Minnesota in the Western Finals.

Texas Notes: Kyrie, Luka, Castle, Rockets

May 30th, 2024 at 5:43pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Mavericks star guard Kyrie Irving suggested that his lackluster performance in Game 4 was a key reason why Dallas failed to sweep the Timberwolves in their Western Conference Finals series, writes Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. The nine-time All-Star shot just 6-of-18 from the floor and coughed up the ball four times.

“If I’m setting the example like that, other guys are going to follow suit unfortunately at times,” Irving said. “It just leads to that lackadaisical play. That’s on me. I’m taking the accountability. I gotta start off the game a lot better and just get a shot up at the rim instead of turning the ball over.”

There’s more out of the Lone Star State:

Now just one win away from his first NBA Finals, All-NBA Mavericks guard Luka Doncic is making the case as potentially the best player in the NBA, opine Zach Harper and Shams Charania of The Athletic. During the postseason, Doncic is averaging 28.3 points (on 55.6% true shooting), 9.6 rebounds and 9.1 dimes per game despite battling through injuries. If Dallas advances past Minnesota and he can vanquish the Celtics in the Finals, the 25-year-old superstar would further bolster his argument as the top talent in the game right now, Harper and Charania contend.
NCAA championship-winning former Connecticut guard Stephon Castle could be the most sensible fit for the Spurs with one of their two top-eight picks in next month’s draft, writes LJ Ellis of Spurs Talk. Ellis cites Castle’s chemistry alongside big man Donovan Clingan, and his ability to distribute in half court sets, as possibly presaging a great two-man game with Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama.
The Rockets possess the No. 3 selection in this month’s draft. Kelly Iko of The Athletic unpacks a ranked list of five ideal fits for a rebuilding Houston roster, fresh off a 41-41 finish to its 2023/24 season.

Mavs’ Lively Listed As Questionable For Game 5

May 30th, 2024 at 9:34am CST by Dana Gauruder

Mavericks rookie center Dereck Lively is listed as questionable to play tonight in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets.

Lively missed Game 4 on Tuesday, when the Timberwolves staved off elimination. He suffered a neck sprain in Game 3 on Sunday.

Lively was injured during the second quarter when he fell backward in the lane and was inadvertently kneed in the head by Timberwolves forward Karl-Anthony Towns.

On the “Run It Back” program (video link), The Athletic’s Shams Charania said Lively will be a game-time decision, adding “it’s really trending toward a 50/50 chance that he plays.”

When healthy, Lively has been extremely effective in the postseason, knocking down all 13 of his field goal attempts in the series. He had a 14-point, nine-rebound outing in Game 2.

Coinciding with Lively’s absence, Mavs big man Maxi Kleber returned to action in Game 4. After being sidelined since May 3 due to a shoulder injury, Kleber played 13 minutes on Tuesday, contributing two points, one rebound and one assist.

Luka Doncic, as he has often been, is also listed as questionable for Game 5 due to knee and ankle ailments. However, Doncic — who posted a triple-double in 41 minutes on Tuesday — has yet to miss a game during this postseason.

Mavericks Notes: Doncic, Irving, Lively, Hardy

May 29th, 2024 at 12:56pm CST by Luke Adams

After shooting a combined 13-of-39 (33.3%) from the floor on Tuesday, Mavericks stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving both accepted the blame for the Game 4 loss, as Tim MacMahon of ESPN writes. While Doncic cited his lack of energy and Irving mentioned his early-game sloppiness, their teammates weren’t willing to let the backcourt duo shoulder the full responsibility for the defeat.

“It’s not on them, it’s on us as a team,” Derrick Jones Jr. said. “We are a unit. We go out there, and we play together, we win together, we lose together. It’s not on one person. I know that they’re the leaders of the team, that head of the snake, but we got their back through thick and through thin.”

The Timberwolves adjusted their defensive assignments on Tuesday, with Anthony Edwards serving as the primary defender on Doncic. Jaden McDaniels guarded Irving, who admitted after the game that the All-Defensive wing represented a new challenge.

“He has a huge impact,” Irving said of McDaniels. “I mean, he is a 6-9 wing defender that I’m seeing now for the first time from the start of the game. So it’s going to be an adjustment, but I love it. I relish in these type opportunities.”

Here’s more out of Dallas:

Referring to Dereck Lively as the Mavericks’ third-most important player, Tim Cato of The Athletic says the rookie center’s absence was noticeable in the Game 4 loss. Lively told Marc J. Spears of Andscape (Twitter link) that his neck sprain is a “day to day thing” and that he’s trying not to rush his recovery and return. On FanDuel’s Run it Back show (Twitter video link), Shams Charania of The Athletic said it’s promising that Lively didn’t have to enter the concussion protocol, adding that there’s a chance the big man could be back for Game 5, though that’s far from a certainty.
Lively isn’t the only Mavericks youngster giving the team important playoff minutes. Second-year guard Jaden Hardy scored 13 points in just 12 minutes of action in Game 4, making 3-of-4 three-pointers and throwing down a highlight-reel dunk. “It felt great to see some shots go in while I was out there,” Hardy said, per Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com. “I’m just trying to bring energy and bring another element to the team that makes us different and trying to make this championship run.” Hardy is under contract for one more season before becoming eligible for restricted free agency in 2025.
The Mavericks still hold a commanding 3-1 lead over Minnesota in the series, so there’s no need to panic yet, writes Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required). Still, it will be crucial not to let the Timberwolves continue to gain confidence by winning additional games. “This is a great opportunity for us as a young team to go through this,” head coach Jason Kidd said.