1. Luka Doncic ripped his jersey. He was frustrated, he wanted to vent that frustration and with the national television cameras turned to him, he reached onto either side of the jersey’s neck and split it right down the middle. It was arguably the coolest thing that has ever been done on a basketball court. It single-handedly redeemed a miserable game that started miserably late during a miserable storm that thankfully did not take out my power. It was majestic, and I will hear no other arguments.
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Frankly, it’s a complete sham that Doncic played the second half with an intact jersey, one that hadn’t been torn asunder. He should have worn that V-neck city edition with pride. He should have strutted down the court with it like he was on a fashion runway. Had he played the final 24 minutes with the distressed uniform, Dallas absolutely would have won. Like LeBron James when he lost his headband in the NBA Finals, infographics would have displayed statistics that read “before the jersey rip” and “after the jersey rip,” and the “after” stats would have been, like, 38 points, 17 rebounds and four assists. (He would have needed his own teammates to rip their jerseys for them to make shots in this game.) Eventually, years later, that shredded garment would have made it into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Alas, Doncic chose another path — one that was likely encouraged by the team’s great equipment managers, Kory Johnson and Craig Metcalfe, trying to make sure he adhered to the league’s uniform regulations. But we will always — always — remember what could have been.
Luka Doncic is not a fan of Dallas’ new jersey pic.twitter.com/YJ4LvE9uzD
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) January 11, 2020
2. I’ve descended into histrionics because if that didn’t redeem this game, what else would have? Dallas was otherwise walloped by the Western Conference’s best team, the Los Angeles Lakers, in a 129-114 defeat that really wasn’t even as close as that scoreline. It was an awful, ugly performance. It certainly matched the weather outside. It was worthy of the late tip due to national television duties. The first half dragged on interminably with fouls, many of them questionable and some of them just bizarre. As Rick Carlisle said about the officiating after the game, “There are some things happening out there that are, quite frankly, shocking.”
3. Carlisle was indeed ejected from this game, lasting two quarters longer than anyone could have expected him to. (I wouldn’t have wagered him making it past halftime; he, instead, was sent off in the fourth quarter.) In his defense, the verbal outrage that got him tossed seemed righteous and vindicated to me. Los Angeles lost a ball out of bounds, wanted to challenge it and did so while Delon Wright was dribbling what appeared to be a live ball past half court. It’s possible one official heard and registered the Lakers challenge before he could relay it to the other one, who allowed the inbounds to happen. In that case, the officials were right to do what they did. But you can’t — well, you sure shouldn’t — retroactively end a live possession because the other team wants to deploy the challenge.
“I thought that since we had the ball inbounds and were dribbling the ball over half court, I didn’t think it was appropriate that they could call a timeout to challenge,” Carlisle said afterward, “and the officials let him (Lakers head coach Frank Vogel) do it. … The officials aren’t perfect.” A little later, he said: “In a leadership position, you’ve got to stand up for your guys.”
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So that’s what happened there.
4. Carlisle offered up a passionate and, um, colorful defense of Doncic’s visible emotions, too. Here’s the full quote.
“He is a guy who loves to win, and he got frustrated when he missed the free throws. I think that’s when he tore the jersey. Those are emotions and feelings that are about winning and losing, so I get it. He’s going through a lot this year, a lot of different situations. He’s made phenomenal performances. Other nights, people have just taken physical liberties on him and beaten the shit out of him. He’s learning how to deal with all that stuff.
“It’s not easy. When I was 20 years old, I was walking around as a freshman at the University of Maine. I didn’t know whether to shit or wind my wristwatch, and this guy is a second-year player and he’s going to be a starter in the All-Star Game. I think we have to understand that he’s still young. He’s mature beyond his years in terms of how he sees the game and his skill set and how he can do things out on the floor, but we’re going through a rough stretch right now, and everybody needs to try to keep their emotions in check. When we do get frustrated, channel that frustration towards the team and each other. Keep each other up and keep fighting. That’s what we have to do. It’s a murderous stretch right now.”
5. Of course it would be better for Doncic to control his emotions better. That’s not some brave stance I’m taking by saying that. Anyone would say that. Doncic himself says that. Dallas is certainly working with him on that. It’s a perfect case for Don Kalkstein, the team’s longtime director of sports psychology, a person who frequently meets with players and travels with the team. That’s his job, making sure players are in the best possible mental state to perform, just as the team’s strength-and-conditioning coaches nurture each players’ physical state.
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Like Carlisle mentioned, it’s certainly worth remembering Doncic is 20. He has the weight of an entire offense upon him, the weight of wins and losses, more than any 20-year-old in this league before him in the modern era other than maybe LeBron James. He’s in an unprecedented situation with his youth, his expectations, his continued learning of this league. And while people certainly mature at different rates and Doncic has seemed to mature much quicker than many of his peers, he’s clearly still a kid in other areas. We can say that Doncic’s emotional state during games should improve and still provide him these compassions.
6. Doncic talked about how badly he and the team played after the game. He takes losses impossibly hard, much like the superstar he’s replacing. Doncic, perhaps, shows more visible frustration. It wouldn’t surprise me if a 20-year-old Dirk Nowitzki would respond the same way, ripped jerseys and all, if he were thrust in the same situation.
7. There’s an increasing amount of talk from the Mavericks locker room about how little respect the team feels it gets from officials. I thought it was interesting that Seth Curry, after the game, put the problem on the lack of a veteran superstar who could talk sense into the referees. I certainly understand Doncic’s frustrations and sympathize with any referee trying to officiate him. Yes, he would probably get whistles slightly more frequently if he didn’t complain so much. But yes, he also absorbs so much contact throughout games that it doesn’t look as severe as it probably is because of his high-level central balance and overall large frame. I don’t know if there’s an immediate answer.
8. Dallas outscored the Lakers in the final three quarters, but there was no overcoming the 45 points allowed in the first quarter. It was a dominant showing from Los Angeles; really, the game was over after all that. Dallas pulled within 10 points at one point but never any closer. This team simply isn’t as unique without Kristaps Porzingis on the floor. There aren’t as many interesting things they can do, and there’s not as much defensive upside without him patrolling near the rim. It’s yet another point in his favor, further proof Porzingis’ presence on the court is almost more important than what he’s actually doing once there. It will be a relief for all parties when he returns for Golden State or Sacramento next week, as seems to be expected.
9. Dallas could fall into seventh place in the Western Conference by losing again Saturday if that’s coupled with a surging Oklahoma City winning its next matchup. But it would take another five losses or so to even approach the eighth seed, and that’s assuming the eighth-seeded team (currently Memphis) starts really winning. Dallas has some schedule relief upcoming: the Warriors, the Kings, the Trail Blazers twice before the month ends. When Porzingis returns, the tilting ship will slowly return to its proper place. The buoyancy still exists with a healthy roster. It’s just about treading water until it gets there.
(Photo of Doncic and Dwight Howard: Jerome Miron / USA Today)
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