Dallas Mavs WATCH: Lu Dort Dirty Play on Hurt Luka Doncic?
Although Luka Doncic is determined to stay on the floor as the Dallas Mavericks get settled into their second-round series with the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder, it's easy to see that he isn't his usual superstar self due to a knee sprain he's been battling during the postseason.
In a 117-95 blowout loss in Game 1 on Tuesday, Doncic finished with 19 points – his lowest-scoring production of the playoffs so far – six rebounds and nine assists while shooting 6-19 from the field and 1-8 from deep. In seven postseason games, Doncic is shooting 22.7 percent from beyond the arc.
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Given his nagging knee issues and shooting struggles, the last thing Doncic needed was for his knee to be re-aggravated ... especially by what many people would consider to be a dirty play.
Nearly halfway through the first quarter with OKC leading Dallas 12-10, Thunder forward Luguentz Dort attempted a 3-pointer from the right wing. As Doncic flew by him to contest the shot, Dort appeared to stick his foot out in an unnatural motion to trip Doncic.
When going back and looking at all four of Dort's other 3-point attempts, it seems clear that kicking out his leg isn't part of his usual shooting motion. Whether the play was intentional or not, we'll never know for sure. But we do know that Dort and the Thunder are fully aware of Doncic's ailing knee.
Regardless, Doncic isn't making any excuses for him or his team. All focus now goes to Game 2, where the Mavs hope to even the series at 1-1 and steal home-court advantage before heading back to Dallas over the weekend.
"Effort. Make shots," Doncic said when asked what adjustments are needed after a disappointing Game 1. "At the end of the day, one team's gotta get to four wins, right? Obviously, we'd like to have Game 1, but you just gotta watch film and move on to the next one. There's a new game in two days, so we got another chance to win."
