Brian Windhorst is not impressed with what he has seen from Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic in the NBA Finals.
Doncic has averaged nearly 30 points per game through the first three games of the NBA Finals, but a 106-99 loss in Game 3 on Wednesday night has the Mavericks on the verge of being swept by the Boston Celtics. Doncic fouled out of the game with just over four minutes remaining, which Windhorst thought was “unacceptable.”
Windhorst torched Doncic during ESPN’s postgame coverage of Game 3. The longtime reporter criticized Doncic for putting himself in a position to foul out and then pressuring the Mavericks to challenge the call, which was upheld.
“I’m standing here in the Mavericks’ tunnel. Over there is the Celtics’ tunnel. That’s where the winners are. If Luka’s ever gonna be a winner coming out of this tunnel here, he’s gonna have to use what’s happened in this Final as a learning experience,” Windhorst said. “His defensive performance is unacceptable. He is a hole on the court. The Celtics are attacking him. They are ahead in this series because they’ve attacked him defensively.
“You’ve got a situation here where Luka is complaining about the officiating. They have begged him, they have talked with him, they have pleaded with him (to stop). He is costing his team because of how he treats the officials. He’s a brilliant player. He does so many things well. They are here because of how he did. His performance in this game is unacceptable and the reason why the Mavericks are not gonna win.”
Brian Windhorst spitting straight FACTS!! Sheesh, he torched Luka.#Celtics pic.twitter.com/Z6wDgNk8h1
— ChargersAllDay /Celtics (@BoltGangBaby) June 13, 2024
Windhorst added that Doncic’s decision to criticize the officiating crew after Game 3 shows that the 25-year-old is “nowhere close yet.”
Doncic has every reason to be frustrated after the Mavericks have fallen into a 3-0 hole. He has not gotten much help from his teammates in the series, but he has also looked a step slow defensively. That may have something to do with all the injuries he is battling through, but Doncic has managed just fine on the offensive end.
No team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in an NBA playoff series. If the Mavs want to be the first, Doncic and Kyrie Irving are both going to have to turn into Michael Jordan overnight.
