PORTLAND, Ore. – Luka Dončić was back Sunday night. And a few ebbs and flows aside, not much changed.
The Mavericks continued to find a way to win.
Dončić returned from a five-game absence and let the Portland Trail Blazers know that he’s still pretty good at this basketball thing. The superstar point guard rolled up 36 points and 13 assists and the Mavericks fended off a strong challenge down the stretch to knock off the Blazers 137-131 at Moda Center to complete a quick sweep of back-to-back games on this trip.
“Just happy, man. It’s what I love to do,” Dončić said about his return after missing five games with a sprained right wrist. “I’m just happy to be out there. Obviously happy we got a win.
“They (his teammates) were playing amazing. They beat some tough teams. I was happy to be back with them.”
And he had some very magical moments, including the second quarter, when he hit all six of his shots, including a trio of three-pointers for 15 points.
“He was really, really good, not just the scoring, but the trust (when he was) being double-teamed and trusting the other guys that were on the floor that they were going to make the right play,” coach Jason Kidd said of Luka. “It’s like he pick up right where he left off.”
Luka, Quentin Grimes and Spencer Dinwiddie made the critical plays down the stretch as the Mavericks won for the eighth time in nine games and improved to 13-8. Portland fell to 8-13.
Interestingly, a challenge helped turn away the Blazers’ late challenge.
With the Mavericks up 130-129, Spencer Dinwiddie, who had 20 points and five assists, was called for an offensive foul while he was running downcourt alongside Deni Avdija.
Dinwiddie immediately signaled to Kidd that the foul call needed to be challenged and Kidd agreed.
The referees overturned their call and Dinwiddie’s two free throws made it a three-point game. Grimes stole the ball from Shaedon Sharpe on the next play and Daniel Gafford got free for an easy dunk and the 134-129 lead stood up the rest of the way.
“The challenge, we’re listening to the players,” Kidd said. “Spencer being Spencer, he felt he was grabbed first. So if it’s going to be a close call, let’s take the challenge. And it also gives us a chance to figure out who we want in defensively if it’s their ball. To come up with the two free throws and Spencer to step up and make them was huge.”
Dinwiddie said he thought the challenge was a no-brainer.
“I knew he was grabbing me,” he said. “I was just trying to run out the clock – and get the ball to Luka, of course. I’m not even trying to make a basketball move. I’m just (taking) the ball up to give the ball to Luka. So holding my arm doesn’t make any sense.
“(It was) hugely important. It’s bang-bang, I guess. Thankful for J-Kidd trusting me in that situation. Yeah, it was big. Step up to the line, knock them down, extend the lead and put them in a different situation than (being) down one.”
It made for a happy ending on a night when the Mavericks were truly shorthanded. But it also was a reminder that they can win in many styles, including when the defense wasn’t great. Both teams made 18 three-pointers and shot over 55 percent.
Luka made sure the Mavericks had plenty of offense to go spare, saying he felt much fresher after nearly two weeks of inaction.
“Definitely. A little bit of rest (helped),” he said. “I was a kind of a little tired the last couple games I played. That shouldn’t be an excuse, but obviously, I feel way better now. I think my pace has been great this game. Just got to keep it going.”
While it was a defensive pillow fight most of the way, the Mavericks got a couple of defensive stops late to sway the outcome.
The Mavericks had just 11 players in uniform and it wasn’t so much how many people were missing, but who those players were.
Klay Thompson (left foot), Kyrie Irving (right shoulder) and Dereck Lively II (right knee) constitute 60 percent of the Mavericks’ usual starting lineup. Also out was Naji Marshall, who has been a spot starter when he hasn’t been a top-shelf reserve.
With a distinct manpower shortage, the Mavericks were fighting from behind throughout the first half, when they trailed by as much as 10 points but scooted into halftime and actually had a 61-58 lead when Dončić scored 10 late points in the half and assisted on back-to-back three-pointers by P.J. Washington and Grimes.
Luka had 20 points by halftime and the Mavericks were in good position to sweep this quick two-game trip.
His second quarter was nothing short of perfection, literally. He had five assists, four rebounds and no turnovers in addition to his flawless shooting.
“Anytime you have an MVP caliber players, let’s say top five in the world, you let him be the MVP and then you figure it out,” Dinwiddie said of how the Mavericks adjusted around Luka in his return. “It’s our job as pros to figure it out.”
And, of course, the second quarter wowed everybody.
“His greatness doesn’t surprise me at all.” Dinwiddie said. “What I’m watching is from the standpoint of his body language. You can tell when he’s got a different type of look when he’s hit a couple and (he says): I’m about to run off 15 more.
“When he has that look, we’re all spectators at that point because ain’t nothing nobody on this planet is going to do (to stop him). He’s got that fire in his eyes.”
X: @ESefko
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