Luka has a fan in Stan Van Gundy.
Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks have been on an absolute heater as of late as the season winds down and the NBA Playoffs emerge, winning 16 out of their last 18 games and playing well on both ends of the floor following their trade deadline acquisitions from the Eastern Conference. Of course, Doncic has long been viewed as a generational type of talent in the NBA, but this is the first season where it feels like the Mavericks star is learning to embrace the help of his supporting cast, which is led by former NBA champion Kyrie Irving, who has been playing some of the best basketball of his career as of late.
Despite his lack of playoff success up to this point, many already view Doncic as one of the elite players in NBA history. One of those pundits is none other than former NBA head coach and current TNT analyst Stan Van Gundy, who recently took to the Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz to drop an opinion that will have Mavericks fans fired up.
“I think actually, the best offensive player now that I have ever seen is Luka Doncic,” said Van Gundy, via @SloHoopsFan on X, the social media platform formerly referred to as Twitter. “…I just don’t think there’s anything the guy can’t do offensively. He’s absolutely huge, first of all. I mean, he’s 6’8″ and big. He shoots the ball from deep… he’s become a more consistent shooter from range… He can drive the ball from the perimeter. He can score in the post, and he’s one of the best passers we have ever had in the league. There is literally no one who can match up with him, and when you bring the second defender, he can pick you apart.”
While all of the above, with the addition of superhuman athleticism, could be said about prime LeBron James, the point still remains that there is little, if any, weakness in Doncic’s offensive game.
A big postseason for the Mavericks
The Mavericks were recently locked into a first round playoff series with the Los Angeles Clippers for the third time in five years. Despite putting up mammoth stat lines against Los Angeles in the first two series and generating a public perception that he “owns” the Clippers, Doncic and the Mavericks lost both times to LA, first in the NBA Bubble in 2020 and then the following year in 2021 despite taking a 2-0 lead–on the road, no less–in that series.
In those series, Doncic had the services of Kristaps Porzingis and Jalen Brunson at his disposal, but over the years, as previously noted, the Slovenian sensation has grown more willing to let his teammates carry the load at times offensively, which is sure to pay dividends going forward.
A first round exit would mean a devastating failure for both the Mavericks and the Clippers this season, but such is the byproduct of what has been a historically elite Western Conference slate. In any case, that series will begin on either April 20 or 21.
