On Friday, Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic failed to make the game-winning shot over the Phoenix Suns with 0.8 seconds left, suffering a 114-113 loss. Doncic led the team with 30 points, seven rebounds and seven assists on 41.7% shooting from three.
With both sides deadlocked at 113 in the closing seconds of the match, the match came down to the wire. While fighting for the rebound in the final seconds of the fourth period, Mavs center Daniel Gafford was called for a foul on Suns center Jusuf Nurkic.
Nurkic missed the first free throw and made the second. With less than a second left, the Mavs drew a play for the Slovenian star to take the game-winning shot. While the team was only down one point, Doncic opted for the 3-pointer from near halfcourt.
However, he couldn’t get his shot to fall.
Almost.
Doncic just missed a 38-footer at buzzer of Suns win over Mavs. #Suns #Mavs https://t.co/vM29RDjTGE pic.twitter.com/Ao38wXsHh0
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 9, 2024
Following the game, Doncic said he didn’t think his final attempt was a terrible shot. The All-Star told reporters that his 3-pointer was a “makeable shot.”
“Always you can get better shot, it’s .8 on the clock so it’s kind of tough, but I think that’s a makeable shot,” Doncic said.
Mavs star Luka Doncic on his final shot attempt:
“Always you can get better shot, it’s .8 on the clock so it’s kind of tough, but I think that’s a makeable shot.” pic.twitter.com/unbLwtjTev
— Noah Weber (@noahweber00) November 9, 2024
The Mavs fall to 5-4 this season, failing to end their five-game home stand on a high note. All-Star guard Kyrie Irving helped with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists. However, the veteran guard struggled to shoot the 3-pointer and had a 33.3% shooting performance.
Four-time champion Klay Thompson only had 12 points in the night and shot 1-for-7 from deep. Dallas’ next game will be on Sunday against the Denver Nuggets to start their three-game road trip.
Luka Doncic’s head coach criticized the team’s low energy versus the Suns
Following their loss, head coach Jason Kidd criticized the team for their low energy against the Suns. He mentioned the lack of aggressiveness from the bench and did not hold his words back to the media.
“For whatever reason, we’re getting off to a slow start, it’s gotta be addressed, we talked about it, there’s gotta be action, there’s gotta be some energy,” Kidd said. “Somebody’s gotta come with some f***ing energy. We’re f***ing flat. That’s where it starts… As deep as we are, we got to get someone to f***ing participate off the bench.”
Jason Kidd on his team tonight:
“For whatever reason, we’re getting off to a slow start, it’s gotta be addressed…Somebody’s gotta come with some f***ing energy. We’re f***ing flat…Our bench stinks right now…As deep as we are, we got to get someone to f***ing participate off… pic.twitter.com/5xAdgegCN4
— Noah Weber (@noahweber00) November 9, 2024
In their loss, the Mavs generated a lowly nine points from the bench. Dwight Powell scored the most points off the bench with four. The Suns, on the other hand, had help from the second unit and had 28 bench points. Veteran forward Royce O’Neale led the bench with 18 points on 4-for-4 shooting from deep.
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Follow me on X at @BarbecueBro, and follow us at @HardwoodHeroics and @GridironHeroics. You can also reach out to Reign Amurao via email at reignkarlmarcamurao@gmail.com. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest sports news, click here!
Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen with Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
