In the second game, although he had 32 points, he just had four rebounds and four assists.
He was 6-of-13 from the field and had seven turnovers. In the first game, Doncic had a mere 19 points, three rebounds, and four assists. And that’s because the mighty Ben Simmons was guarding him for most of the night. A look at the stat sheet reveals how Doncic struggled to play his game. In their two regular-season duels, the 76ers won both games convincingly. The Lakers were the best defensive team in the regular season. And of course, defense has always been a team effort. James, given his similar play style to Doncic, knows the Slovenian’s tendencies. Apart from James’ heft, there’s also his basketball IQ which is second to none.Įven if the Mavs get rid of James through switches, the Lakers forward would know what to do. The Slovenian is so used to bullying smaller guards but that’s just impossible if LeBron matches up with him. His size alone will create problems for Luka Doncic. 2.) LeBron JamesĮven at 36 years old, LeBron James can still be considered one of the more capable defenders in this league. Of course, there was also this instance where Wiggins was able to swat the heck out of Luka Doncic’s weak lay-up attempt.
There were even times when Wiggins was switched to much quicker players like De’Aaron Fox and he had no problem using his speed and length in defending the athletic guard. In the 2020-21 NBA season, fans saw Wiggins contain the likes of Jayson Tatum to 5-of-16 shooting, DeMar DeRozan to 5-of-15, Bradley Beal 6-of-14, and Kawhi Leonard 6-of-17. This type of attitude has blinded many of Wiggins’ stellar defensive performance. 3.) Andrew WigginsĪndrew Wiggins has been receiving a lot of flack for not living up to his potential as a former number one overall pick in the NBA Draft. Doncic’s stepbacks won’t be worth anything against a 7-foot-2 wingspan. We all know how Luka Doncic is pretty much like a Magic Johnson-type player in how he wants to get his teammates involved.īut the Slovenian decides to drive to the hoop, then Antetokounmpo can use his lateral quickness to stay in front of him. He has that incredible wingspan that can deny those nifty Doncic dimes. However, Giannis has all the tools to contain Doncic. Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo is assigned to guard Kristaps Porzingis. The Bucks have given this assignment to Jrue Holiday who is another great defender. Whenever the Milwaukee Bucks and the Dallas Mavericks face off, we never really see Giannis defending Doncic. Among all the players in the league, Leonard belongs in the exclusive list on who can defend Doncic. But if you’re the Clippers, it would foolish not to let Leonard defend the opposing team’s best player. This may be one of the real reasons why Doncic pounced on him in the first two games. Unfortunately, Leonard’s growth on offense comes with more responsibilities. If this were a younger Kawhi whose only job was to stop the best player of the opposing team, then he would be number one on this list. This goes to show that Rick Carlisle knows that Luka Doncic can operate better if Leonard is not defending him. The Mavericks were smart enough to switch it up whenever Leonard is upfront.
To be fair, Leonard wasn’t defending Luka the entire game. But this doesn’t mean Leonard is washed up and cannot stop Luka. Kawhi Leonard got wrecked by Doncic in the first two games. But it’s a very short list of just five players. Given that Doncic gave them a rough beating, some fans are asking: is there any player who can stop the Doncic onslaught? There are. After all, the Clippers have some of the best defensive stalwarts in Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and even Patrick Beverley. At the expense of the Clippers, star guard Luka Doncic has once again entered the limelight. Now, more people have joined the bandwagon as they’re down 2-0 to the Dallas Mavericks in the first round.
#Luka doncic wingspan series#
The LA Clippers have been the laughing stock of the league since they blew that 3-1 series lead to the Denver Nuggets last year.
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