By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Luka Doncic was visibly frustrated following the Dallas Mavericks’ 120 – 101 loss to the Utah Jazz, a result that marked his team’s seventh defeat in the last nine games.
“Terrible,” was the word Doncic used to describe the effort of his team. After he was asked to elaborate further, the Slovenian player added that, “There’s not really much to say. I never felt like this. We got to do something. Because this isn’t looking good. We got to step up and just talk to each other and play way better. It’s mostly effort.”
After having an MVP-caliber season to help the Mavericks return to the playoffs following a three-year absence, Doncic now see his team heavily struggling at a 8 – 11 record. Dallas was also plagued by absences (Josh Richardson, Dorian Finney-Smith, Dwight Powell and most recently Maxi Kleber) but they don’t make an excuse for Doncic.
“I would say right now it’s looking like we don’t care, honestly, if we win games or not,” Doncic said. “We just [need] more energy, more effort, dive for every ball, box out, everything.”
Doncic, who is averaging 27.3 points, 9.6 assists and 9.2 rebounds, is hopeful that his team can turn it around and get on a winning track. “There’s a lot of things we could improve, and I know we will. I know we will, and that’s all that matters.”