Doncic's Heroics Help Mavs Survive Collapse: 3 Big Takeaways From Win vs. Clippers
DALLAS – On Tuesday night, the Dallas Mavericks almost did it again – and by did it again, we're talking about losing a game after blowing a big lead.
The Mavs held on by the end of their finger tips against the Los Angeles Clippers, 103-101, with the heroics of Luka Doncic and the clutch shooting from Reggie Bullock being the main headlines from the game.
Doncic finished with 35 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, and three steals, which included his last-second heave at the end of the shot clock with under 28 seconds to go in the game.
Dorian Finney-Smith and Reggie Bullock combined for 34 points, making 11 3-pointers after a slow start to their season. Overall, even with the near-collapse, it was a great night at American Airlines Center.
Here are the three big takeaways from the Mavs clutch victory over the Clippers:
'Luka Magic' shows up yet again
The man simply lives for the big moment.
And boy, does he love playing against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Doncic put on another show against his rival in a much-needed win after Dallas gave away their 25-point lead in the first half. When the pressure was on, and the clock is ticking down, No. 77 did what he does best – make a winning play ... even if there was a little luck involved.
Doncic's last-second 29-foot heave from deep as the shot clock expired helped the Mavericks extend their lead to four with 28 seconds remaining. After hitting the shot, Doncic ran down the floor shushing his home crowd out of excitement, which he laughed about postgame.
"I was a bit lucky,” Doncic said. “I just shot it and it was two seconds on the [shot clock]. It went in. Just a little bit lucky, but we’ll take it.”
When you have Doncic and a little bit of luck on your side, you've always got a good chance to come out with the W. The Mavs did just that and improved to 8-5 on the season.
Mavs shooting slumps over?
Finney-Smith and Bullock not only made an impact on the defensive end on Tuesday, but their shooting strokes made a big comeback as well.
Finney-Smith scored a season-high 21 points and grabbed seven rebounds while knocking down a season-high and a career-high 7-of-13 attempts from downtown.
For Bullock, his slump has been a bit more rough, shooting just 29.7 percent prior to Tuesday night’s game. Heading into the fourth, Bullock was scoreless before hitting four 3-pointers in the final quarter, including three in the last six minutes of the game.
"Had to come into this game with the same confidence. All my teammates believe in me to keep shooting the ball," Bullock said postgame. "I've been struggling a little bit to start the season but I believe I'm one of the best shooters in the league."
Finney-Smith and Bullock also had the job of hounding Clippers’ Paul George all game long, holding the All-Star to 23 points on just 13 shots while forcing a career-high 10 turnovers.
If these two can find a consistent stroke, which they did last season following slow starts, the Mavericks' trajectory is on a different level.
Mavs' bad habit of blowing big leads continues
Yes, the Mavericks survived on Tuesday night after blowing a 25-point first-half lead, but just because they got the W doesn’t mean there’s not room for concern.
Dallas is only 13 games into its season and has blown three significant double-digit leads, including the win over the Clippers. It's an issue that can't continue if this team wants to truly become a contender in the Western Conference.
And it starts with head coach Jason Kidd.
When these leads continue to disappear, Kidd seems to give certain lineups a long leash. He doesn't like to call timeouts as opponents start to make a run, and a lot of times, that can really put the Mavs in a bind if they can't stop the momentum.
But, it isn't just on Kidd either.
The lineups on the floor at the time of these awful collapse have seemingly let their foot off the gas when they jump out to big leads. Sometimes shot just don't fall, and when you pair that with your opponent shooting 53 percent from the field and 43 percent from deep like the Clippers did on Tuesday night, it's actually impressive that Dallas was able to hold on and avoid the total collapse.
The coaching staff and the other leaders of the team have to nip this in the bud before the postseason. The good news is that they have 69 more games to figure things out.
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