The Dallas Mavericks got off to a strong start this NBA season, coming out of the gates 6-3 on the back of Luka Doncic. Doncic had a historic start to the season, becoming the first player other than Wilt Chamberlain to open a season with 30+ points scored in nine consecutive games.
That streak came to an end earlier this week against the Orlando Magic. The Mavericks lost the game 94-87 as Doncic scored 24 points in the game. Their losing streak was pushed to two games as Dallas followed that up with a loss to the Washington Wizards, 113-105. Doncic once again fell short of the 30-point mark, scoring a season-low 22 points.
Spencer Dinwiddie tried picking up the slack, as he scored 29 against the Magic and 33 against the Wizards, but it wasn’t enough to get the Mavericks a win. More concerning for the Mavericks is that Doncic is already battling fatigue only 11 games into the season.
“The difference is a little bit of everything,” Doncic said after the Mavs’ 113-105 loss to the Washington Wizards on Thursday. “I had a really busy summer, I think a little bit came after me. I’m just feeling more tired on the court these last two games than anything, but that’s not an excuse.”
That certainly isn’t encouraging to hear as the marathon NBA regular season is still in its infancy. Doncic was carrying an unsustainable load offensively and playing at a very high level, something that Jason Kidd is going to have to figure out as the season moves along.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Luka Doncic & Dallas Mavericks Updates
It has been clear in the last two games that Doncic is running on fumes as his efficiency has fallen off a cliff. He was 17-of-50 against Orlando and Washington and 5-of-19 from 3-point range. The burden of carrying the offense was already weighing on him, as the team will have to figure out ways to get him rest.
Doncic doesn’t want to sit out games, but it is something that he would consider in certain circumstances.
“I’m not trying to get days off,” Doncic said. “I don’t go all day, every day. But, for sure, at some point, if something is bothering me, I will see when I can rest — which team I can take a rest. Obviously, I think I need one. We have one day off now. And, now, we’ll see.”
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Luka Doncic & Dallas Mavericks Updates
Kidd knows that changes have to be made for Doncic to survive the entire season. He will have to find ways to not only get him rest during games but scheme up ways for the other players on the team to produce and not have to rely so much on Doncic’s heroics to win games.
“If we keep this up, then he will not be human if he gets past Christmas,” Kidd said. “So one or the other is going to show: He’s human or not, and we believe he’s human.”
Doncic is certainly human, as he has shown in the last two games. Burning out their franchise cornerstone before the calendar turns to 2023 would be a disaster for Dallas as this week has been a prime example of what happens when Doncic is off his game.
LATEST NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Luka Doncic & Dallas Mavericks Updates
Given the expectations that the Mavericks had coming into the season, Doncic must be peaking in April, not November. If scaling things back in the coming weeks leads to a few losses, so be it. This isn’t the time to push Doncic, as the Mavericks could play nearly 100 more games this season if everything goes according to plan.
