DALLAS – Luka Doncic, who is in the middle of the most prolific score in the history of the Dallas Mavericks, could not have asked for a better look with the game on the line on Sunday night.
And he couldn’t believe he had failed, clutching his temples with both hands and looking at the American Airlines Center deer after his wide-open pointer on the left wing came out with five seconds left to seal a 121- 118 losses to the Portland Trail Blazers.
“It doesn’t matter if I’m confident or not. The shot came out,” said Doncic, who had 44 points on 14 of 20 and nine assists in the loss. “Obviously, I was disappointed. I thought he was in and he came in and out, so I was disappointed. That’s me. I should have shot.”
Doncic hasn’t been missing much lately. The 90 points he earned over the weekend – he recorded 46 careers on Friday in a victory over the New Orleans Pelicans – are the most in a span of two games in franchise history. He shot 62% of the floor in the pair of games, including 5-of-8 from the 3-point range in both contests.
The Trail Blazers didn’t want to let the Mavs try a shot at all in their possession, much less show Doncic a good look, as Portland planned to make a foul to send Dallas on the free throw . However, Doncic made a spectacular save. Kristaps Porzingis was given a chance to change things around.
“If he had that shot nine times, I think he would get nine in a row,” said Mavs coach Rick Carlisle. “I mean, he was in and out. And that’s the guy we want to take. We thought he was great, so we’re disappointed.”
Dallas rose from a ten-point deficit in the fourth quarter, equaling the remaining 49.5 seconds when Dorian Finney-Smith scored 3 from a Doncic feed. But Portland superstar Damian Lillard gave the Blazers the final lead in the next possession, adding to his extensive collection of clutch buckets, taking a step back 3 over Finney-Smith.
“He sat in his position as if he had a good possession in defense,” said Lillard, who had 34 points and 11 assists. “It’s what you expect from the defenders in this league, but I noticed that they will not double and I said: ‘It will be one to one.’ I got the photos I wanted. I look clean. In my mind, I was like, “Okay, if that’s going to be, I’m fine with that.” “
Finney-Smith was left alone with Lillard at the top of the arc because Dallas did not execute the game plan. Mavs’s coaches asked for a double team, according to Carlisle, wanting to get the ball out of Lillard’s hands.
“Communication didn’t get there,” Carlisle said. “He hit a hard shot, but it’s a hit he does regularly.”
No one in the NBA hits more photos in those situations than Lillard. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, this was his 33rd career basket in the last minute of a game, including in the playoffs, the biggest in the league since Lillard was drafted in 2012.
Lillard also leads the league this season with 65 points during the clutch, which is defined as the last five minutes of regulation or overtime when the score is five points, pulling 58% off the floor in those situations. He had seven of the nine clutch points in Portland on Sunday.
“He did it for a long time,” said Portland coach Terry Stotts. “Many times, the most important thing is to bring him the ball. That’s what makes great players. They make those games and obviously he’s a great player.”