As we prepare for the Boston Celtics to host the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, June 6, for Game 1 of the NBA Finals, let's take a look back on the phenomenal run Mavericks guard Luka Doncic has completed to capture his first-ever NBA Finals appearance.
In his sixth year in the NBA, Doncic captured the best statistical season of his career, recording 33.9 points, 9.8 assists, and 9.2 rebounds per game in the 2023-2024 NBA regular season, helping the Mavericks secure the No. 6 seed in the highly competitive Western Conference, and leading them past the No. 4 seeded Los Angeles Clippers and the No. 1 seed in the West the Oklahoma City Thunder, to eventually face the No. 3 seeded Minnesota Timberwolves, winning all three series in a maximum of six games.
While he has received help from crucial role players such as Mavs’ guard Kyrie Irving, forward PJ Washington, and Center Daniel Gafford, Doncic has been the spearhead for the Mavericks this postseason, and it is reflected in the stat sheet. Luka leads the entire NBA postseason in points (489), rebounds (164), assists (150), steals (28), and three-pointers (57), truly doing it all to help Dallas reach their first NBA Finals appearance since 2011, where Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavericks defeated the Lebron James and the Miami Heat.
Luka team ranks this playoffs:
— StatMuse (@statmuse) June 2, 2024
1st in PTS, 489 (next closest: 388)
1st in REB, 164 (next closest: 115)
1st in AST, 150 (next closest: 88)
1st in STL, 28 (next closest: 20)
1st in 3PM, 57 (next closest: 45)
1st in FTM, 100 (next closest: 53)
Insane run. pic.twitter.com/pxk0XD9cES
The tale is similar this time, when a European superstar, Luka Doncic, takes on a 26-year-old All-Star Jayson Tatum, just 13 years after Nowitzki defeated James in 2011. Doncic and the Mavericks hope to repeat history starting June 6 at TD Garden in Boston, where two young phenoms in Doncic and Tatum will face off against each other for the first time since March 1, 2024.
