Getty Head coach Jason Kidd of the Dallas Mavericks.
In case you missed it, the Dallas Mavericks squeaked out a nice win against the reigning champion Golden State Warriors last night. The man of the match by far was Luka Doncic, who exploded for a 41 point, 12 rebound, and 12 assist triple-double. It was Doncic’s 20th time scoring 40 or more points, surpassing Mavs legend Dirk Nowitzki for second on the franchise’s leaderboard.
After the game, Mavs head coach Jason Kidd couldn’t help but throw a lighthearted jab Doncic’s way.
“It’s getting boring,” Jason Kidd joked. “I mean, let’s see something different. Maybe [he can] do it with his left hand. I’m just joking. Look, he’s one of the best in the world, and that’s what he does. Some of us can take him for granted. The man is special.”
Can Doncic’s Supporting Cast Step Up?
Since entering the league back in 2018, the Mavericks have shown a stunning inability to add significant talent around Doncic. But we aren’t even talking about elite co-stars, here. Even middling, just above-average talent has eluded Dallas.
In his four years in the league, Doncic has played with, wait for it, three players who made at least one All-Star game in their career. Maybe that’s not a bad figure — Trae Young in Atlanta, for example, only played with that many before Dejounte Murray showed up. But even the three All-Stars Doncic played with all come with caveats. One was Dirk Nowitzki, whose final year was Doncic’s rookie season. Another was DeAndre Jordan, who made just one All-Star game with the Clippers, several years before Doncic even entered the league. And the third was Kristaps Porzingis, and we all know how that experiment went.
So they failed to swing for the fences and land a viable All-Star to pair with Doncic. That’s bad, but somehow it gets worse. Not only hasn’t Dallas landed Doncic a co-star, it now can’t for the meantime without finding a way to match salaries in a trade. That’s because Dallas went about constructing its roster by handing out deals in the teens like a struggling grocery store brand does with free samples. Spencer Dinwiddie, Tim Hardaway, Jr., Davis Bertans, Christian Wood, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Dwight Powell (in other words, the five highest salaries after Doncic) are making an average of $16.5 million this season. That figure is something of an NBA contract Bermuda Triangle: few players in that range are worth the value (Derrick Rose, Markelle Fultz, Duncan Robinson, etc.). Of the last three Finals winners, only one player made between $12.5 million and $17 million: Danny Green for the Lakers three seasons ago.
Even though Dallas has not shown a real ability to identify, surround, and then properly pay players alongside Luka Doncic, the Slovenian superstar insists he isn’t going anywhere.
Doncic Relieves Fans in Recent TV Interview
Doncic might have time left on his contract, but that means much less than it did two years ago. Since then, the league has seen several superstars demand trades, even with multiple years left on their deals. Thus, it’s why it’s fair to wonder when Doncic gets disgruntled by the lack of elite co-stars with him in Dallas.
Fortunately, Doncic doesn’t have the same concerns. In an interview with local television station WFAA, Doncic explained he isn’t going anywhere any time soon.
“I don’t think they’re worried about it right now,” Doncic told WFAA of Mavs’ fans. “I got what, five years left here, so I don’t think they should be worried about it.”
That’s music to any Mavericks fan’s ears. We’ll see, though, if Doncic feels the same way in two seasons if nothing else changes.