LISTEN: How High Can Doncic Carry Mavs in NBA Playoff Standings?

The Dallas Mavericks just keep winning games with their elite defense, and now, Luka Doncic is starting to find his offensive rhythm as well. Let’s talk about it.

Despite superstar Luka Doncic not having the most efficient season so far, the Dallas Mavericks have still been able to string together 10 wins in the last 11 games with their newfound rugged defense.

The offensive struggles were a thing of the past for Doncic on Wednesday night, though, as he torched the Toronto Raptors for 41 points on 13-of-24 shooting from the field and 11-of-12 from the free throw line. Doncic also grabbed 14 rebounds and dished out seven assists. It was Doncic’s first 40-point game of the season and the first time since November 27 that he had reached the 30-point mark.

Doncic finding his rhythm as the Mavs continue to play outstanding defense bodes well for Dallas potentially being able to scale the Western Conference playoff standings. Not only do the Mavs have a fairly light schedule to close out January, but with the Memphis Grizzlies and Utah Jazz dealing with a number of different issues right now, it’s very possible that Dallas could be in the top half of the West standings sooner than later.

On this episode of Mavs Step Back LIVE, host Dalton Trigg is joined by Kirk Henderson of Mavs Moneyball to discuss all of this at length, including the strategic changes that have let to Dallas’ amazing defensive efforts, how sustainable this level of play is for the rest of the season, waiting on a Goran Dragic buyout to balance out the Mavs’ bench, and much more! Thanks for listening:

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Luka’s dagger 3 vs. Toronto last night presented in Mavs Step Back watch party screenshots (@dalton_trigg in the bottom right bubble) #MFFL pic.twitter.com/7AdDPG8ZaU

— Mavs Step Back (@StepBackMavs) January 20, 2022

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