Dallas Mavs Reactions: Luka Doncic Punishes Memphis Grizzlies, ‘Awards’ Derrick Jones Jr.

The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Memphis Grizzlies behind another stellar Luka Doncic performance, and the Mavs Step Back Podcast crew breaks down the team’s first 3-0 start in 19 years.

The Dallas Mavericks are riding high after defeating the Memphis Grizzlies 125-110 on Monday night to join the Denver Nuggets as the only two undefeated teams in the Western Conference. And why not? After all, this is something the Mavs haven’t experienced since the 2004-05 season, so having early-season success is certainly something to be excited about.

“It's great man. It's a great start. We know we have a lot of games left, but it's obviously a great start,” said Luka Doncic, who finished with 35 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists while shooting 11-22 from the field. Doncic joined Russell Westbrook and Oscar Robertson as the only three players in NBA history to record a triple-double in the first three games of a season.

On today’s episode of the Mavs Step Back Podcast, we discuss Dallas’ win over Memphis in depth, including Doncic’s historic start, Kyrie Irving’s injury status, rookie big man Dereck Lively II’s foul trouble, Derrick Jones Jr.’s breakout offensive performance, and much more.

Luka Doncic spots up from deep :: Justin Ford/Getty Images

“It’s wonderful. It’s always wonderful to touch the ball,” Jones said when asked about playing with Doncic. “As a basketball player, you don’t want to just be running up and down the floor. I got to say he’s phenomenal … 100 percent. So happy that I'm here playing with him and I don’t have to guard that anymore.”

Doncic says that he will 'award' players who run the floor for him, and Jones is certainly one of the guys who should benefit from that all season.

“I always told them, ‘Guys, if you're going to run, you're going to get the ball,'" Doncic said. "Even then, I threw one that was almost impossible to catch. When they run, I will always try to award them. So, it's a great thing. I think they played amazing tonight.”

With Irving out, Jones put up 22 points, which was three shy of his career-high. He shot 7-10 from the field, 4-6 from deep and played sound defense in the process as well. It’s still early, but Jones looks to be worth every penny of his one-year veteran’s minimum contract so far.

You can watch and listen to our entire episode below. As always, thanks for tuning in, and be sure to hit that subscribe button on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and anywhere else you get your podcasts!