Tag Archives: Doncic

Sports

Luka Doncic, Slovenia reach final, on verge of qualifying for Olympic basketball tournament

Leave a comment

Mike Tobey scored 27 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, and Luka Doncic was one rebound shy of a triple-double as Slovenia eased past Venezuela 98-70 on Saturday in the semifinals of an Olympic qualifying tournament in Kaunas, Lithuania.

Slovenia needs just one more win to earn a trip to the Olympics.

Tobey was born in New York, went to high school in New Jersey, played college ball for Virginia, began his pro career in North Carolina and eventually signed with a club in Spain.

He was 11-for-17 from the field for Slovenia, and Doncic raved about his performance.

“He can do a lot and he’s a great defensive guy,” said Doncic, a star with the Dallas Mavericks. “He’s really helping us down there.”

Doncic finished with 23 points, 13 assists and 9 rebounds for Slovenia (3-0), which will play either Lithuania or Poland on Sunday with a berth in the Tokyo Olympics on the line.

All four sites of qualifying tournaments — Lithuania, Canada, Serbia and Croatia — will hold championship games Sunday to determine the last four teams in the Olympic men’s basketball field.

“It would be amazing. It would be a dream to be in the Olympics,” Doncic said. “Not just me, I think the whole federation of Slovenia and the whole country. They really cheer for us and I hope we get to that.”

Slovenia has rolled through its first three games, winning by 50, 35 and now 28 points. It has trailed for a total of 6 minutes, 55 seconds out of 120 minutes of action — 5.8% of the time — and the entirety of that was in the first quarter of a group play game against Poland.

Zoran Dragic added 12 points for Slovenia, which won the European championship in 2017 but has not qualified for the Olympics in men’s basketball since gaining independence from Yugoslavia in 1991.

Pedro Chourio and Michael Carrera each scored 16 for Venezuela, which got 10 from David Cubillan.

BELGRADE, SERBIA BRACKET

SERBIA 102, PUERTO RICO 84: Vasilije Micic scored 21 points, Nemanja Bjelica added 18 and host Serbia moved into Sunday’s final at Belgrade against Italy.

Filip Petrusev and Danilo Andjusic each scored 15 points and Milos Teodosic finished with 11 points and 10 assists for Serbia (3-0), which won the silver medal at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Isaiah Pineiro scored 23 points on 10-of-12 shooting for Puerto Rico (1-2), which got 20 points from George Conditt, 17 from Gian Clavell and a 12-point, 10-assist game from Gary Browne.

ITALY 79, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 59: Italy used a 17-0 run in the third quarter to build what became a 32-point lead, and had no trouble reaching Sunday’s final.

Simone Fontecchio scored 17 points and Stefano Tonut added 14 for Italy, which had all 12 of its players reach the scoring column.

Brandone Edward Francis Ramirez scored 12 for the Dominican Republic (1-2), and Adonys Henriquez added 10.

SPLIT, CROATIA BRACKET

GERMANY 86, CROATIA 76: Germany closed the game on a 19-2 run to stun host Croatia and move into Sunday’s championship game in Split against Brazil.

Maodo Lo scored 29 points and added eight assists for Germany (3-0), which got 13 points from Joshiko Saibou and 11 from Andreas Obst.

Bojan Bogdanovic did all he could for Croatia, scoring 38 points on 11-for-19 shooting. His teammates, combined, totaled 38 points on 12-for-35 shooting. Mario Hezonja finished with 14 for Croatia (1-2), which missed its final seven shots.

BRAZIL 102, MEXICO 74: Vitor Benite scored 22 points and Brazil (3-0) had little trouble with Mexico on its way to Sunday’s final in Split.

Rafael Luz scored 12 points and Alex Garcia scored 11 for Brazil, which outscored Mexico 54-27 from 3-point range.

Francisco Cruz scored 18 for Mexico (1-2), which got 16 from Gustavo Ayon, 12 from Orlando Mendez and 11 from Paul Stoll.

Read original article here

Sports

Luka Doncic gave the Dallas Mavericks another night of unstoppable offense

Leave a comment

DALLAS — Sometimes, it doesn’t matter who defends Luka Doncic. Case in point — or 42 points, actually — Paul George, the LA Clippers superstar whose name always comes up in conversations about the NBA’s premier perimeter stoppers. Doncic made the four-time All-Defensive selection look foolish on numerous occasions during his masterful performance in the Dallas Mavericks ‘ 105-89 win on Wednesday.

Doncic, who finished with 42 points on 16-of-28 shooting and nine assists, didn’t do all his damage against George. Kawhi Leonard didn’t have any luck on him, either. Neither did Nicolas Batum. Or anyone else the Clippers threw at the 22-year-old All-Star. And it wasn’t for a lack of effort.

“For the most part, defensively, I thought we did a good job even though Luka torched us,” Clippers coach Ty Lue said.

George got the worst of it. According to Second Synergy data, half of Doncic’s points came when he was matched up with George in the half court. Doncic had 21 points on 15 shots — on 70% effective field goal percentage — and dished out five assists with no turnovers when guarded by George.

“I thought we played great defense,” George said, “but they hit some really, really tough shots, and they made some really, really big plays.”

The play that produced the most gasps was probably a Doncic miss. If Doncic swished that particular step-back shot, it would have been a viral highlight within seconds, as he slammed on the brakes and crossed over so suddenly that George stumbled to the hardwood, putting both hands down to break his fall as Doncic released the shot.

It wasn’t quite as nasty as James Harden’s crossover and step-back jumper a few years ago that caused former Clippers forward Wes Johnson to involuntarily take a seat in the middle of the court. But this was against Paul George, not some journeyman.

Doncic’s last bucket, a dagger floater with 1:27 remaining, came after another move that made George’s hand go to the floor to prevent himself from falling. It was a behind-the-back crossover on the right wing, where George stayed after regaining his balance, getting a nice view of Doncic finishing in the lane.

“I’m not going to say anything about Paul George, who may have slipped on the floor or something like that, but Luka’s a great player,” Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said, emphasizing the respect he had for George and the Clippers. “He has the ability to make these stop-on-a-dime plays that are really exceptionally special.”

There aren’t many answers for Doncic when he is shooting efficiently from 3-point range, which he has done on a regular basis recently. Doncic has shot 43% from deep in his past 14 games — and 50.5% from the floor overall — averaging 30.5 points and 9.2 assists in that span. Not coincidentally, the Mavs (21-18) have won 11 of 14 games, marching back into the Western Conference playoff picture after falling five games under .500.

It’s no secret Doncic wants to take step-back shots going to his left, particularly from the left wing. The Clippers (26-16) know that better than anyone, considering it’s the shot and spot of Doncic’s unforgettable overtime buzzer-beater to punctuate a 43-point triple-double in a bubble playoff victory over them.

Yet Doncic was still 6-of-11 from 3-point range on Wednesday, including a four-point play when he paused after stepping back, leaned in and drew contact from Leonard as he let the shot go.

“At times, we let him get to the left step-back too much, and he got comfortable,” Leonard said. “He got hot and made shots, and it’s hard to turn off that water once a great player like that gets rolling.”

ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk contributed to this report.

Read original article here

Sports

NBA All-Star Game 2021: Luka Doncic says Damian Lillard ‘maybe deserved’ starting spot over him

Leave a comment

Earlier this week, the NBA announced the 10 starters for the 2021 All-Star Game, which is set to take place on March 7 in Atlanta. As always, there was plenty of debate about whether the right players were selected — in particular as it relates to the Western Conference backcourt.

The two guards who got the nod were Steph Curry and Luka Doncic, though many believe that Damian Lillard deserved a spot. And, in fact, he nearly did. Doncic and Lillard were tied after the full voting process, which includes input from fans, media and players, and the Mavericks star only got the start because he won the tiebreaker which was based on the fan vote. 

Now, a few days later, Doncic has weighed in on the situation. Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Doncic admitted that he was surprised to be named a starter, and thought that Lillard might have been the more deserving choice. 

“I didn’t expect that I was going to start this game,” Doncic said. “I know that maybe [Damian] Lillard deserved it more than me.”

That was a gracious thing for Doncic to say, but he really doesn’t need to be apologizing. He didn’t have any say in the process and is putting together an absolutely brilliant season. Through 29 games he’s averaging 29.1 points, 8.6 rebounds and 9.4 assists. He’s fifth in the league in scoring, third in assists, and putting up career-best marks in both of those categories. If that isn’t deserving of starting the All-Star Game, then what is?

It’s unfortunately just a difficult situation where there are more deserving candidates than spots available. Lillard himself is turning in 29.8 points, 4.4 rebounds and 7.7 assists on a nightly basis, and has the Trail Blazers in fourth place in the Western Conference. Surely that’s deserving of a starting spot as well, but only two players can receive that honor, which is why there’s a voting process to make the final determination. This time it just didn’t go Lillard’s way.

The good news for the Blazers’ star man is that he’ll absolutely be going to the game, and in the long run no one really remembers if you started, just if you were there or not. And he will be there. 

require.config({"baseUrl":"https://sportsfly.cbsistatic.com/fly-155/bundles/sportsmediajs/js-build","config":{"version":{"fly/components/accordion":"1.0","fly/components/alert":"1.0","fly/components/base":"1.0","fly/components/carousel":"1.0","fly/components/dropdown":"1.0","fly/components/fixate":"1.0","fly/components/form-validate":"1.0","fly/components/image-gallery":"1.0","fly/components/iframe-messenger":"1.0","fly/components/load-more":"1.0","fly/components/load-more-article":"1.0","fly/components/load-more-scroll":"1.0","fly/components/loading":"1.0","fly/components/modal":"1.0","fly/components/modal-iframe":"1.0","fly/components/network-bar":"1.0","fly/components/poll":"1.0","fly/components/search-player":"1.0","fly/components/social-button":"1.0","fly/components/social-counts":"1.0","fly/components/social-links":"1.0","fly/components/tabs":"1.0","fly/components/video":"1.0","fly/libs/easy-xdm":"2.4.17.1","fly/libs/jquery.cookie":"1.2","fly/libs/jquery.throttle-debounce":"1.1","fly/libs/jquery.widget":"1.9.2","fly/libs/omniture.s-code":"1.0","fly/utils/jquery-mobile-init":"1.0","fly/libs/jquery.mobile":"1.3.2","fly/libs/backbone":"1.0.0","fly/libs/underscore":"1.5.1","fly/libs/jquery.easing":"1.3","fly/managers/ad":"2.0","fly/managers/components":"1.0","fly/managers/cookie":"1.0","fly/managers/debug":"1.0","fly/managers/geo":"1.0","fly/managers/gpt":"4.3","fly/managers/history":"2.0","fly/managers/madison":"1.0","fly/managers/social-authentication":"1.0","fly/utils/data-prefix":"1.0","fly/utils/data-selector":"1.0","fly/utils/function-natives":"1.0","fly/utils/guid":"1.0","fly/utils/log":"1.0","fly/utils/object-helper":"1.0","fly/utils/string-helper":"1.0","fly/utils/string-vars":"1.0","fly/utils/url-helper":"1.0","libs/jshashtable":"2.1","libs/select2":"3.5.1","libs/jsonp":"2.4.0","libs/jquery/mobile":"1.4.5","libs/modernizr.custom":"2.6.2","libs/velocity":"1.2.2","libs/dataTables":"1.10.6","libs/dataTables.fixedColumns":"3.0.4","libs/dataTables.fixedHeader":"2.1.2","libs/dateformat":"1.0.3","libs/waypoints/infinite":"3.1.1","libs/waypoints/inview":"3.1.1","libs/waypoints/jquery.waypoints":"3.1.1","libs/waypoints/sticky":"3.1.1","libs/jquery/dotdotdot":"1.6.1","libs/jquery/flexslider":"2.1","libs/jquery/lazyload":"1.9.3","libs/jquery/maskedinput":"1.3.1","libs/jquery/marquee":"1.3.1","libs/jquery/numberformatter":"1.2.3","libs/jquery/placeholder":"0.2.4","libs/jquery/scrollbar":"0.1.6","libs/jquery/tablesorter":"2.0.5","libs/jquery/touchswipe":"1.6.18","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.core":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.draggable":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.mouse":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.position":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.slider":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.sortable":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.touch-punch":"0.2.3","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.autocomplete":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.accordion":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.tabs":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.menu":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.dialog":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.resizable":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.button":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.tooltip":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.effects":"1.11.4","libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.datepicker":"1.11.4"}},"shim":{"liveconnection/managers/connection":{"deps":["liveconnection/libs/sockjs-0.3.4"]},"liveconnection/libs/sockjs-0.3.4":{"exports":"SockJS"},"libs/setValueFromArray":{"exports":"set"},"libs/getValueFromArray":{"exports":"get"},"fly/libs/jquery.mobile-1.3.2":["version!fly/utils/jquery-mobile-init"],"libs/backbone.marionette":{"deps":["jquery","version!fly/libs/underscore","version!fly/libs/backbone"],"exports":"Marionette"},"fly/libs/underscore-1.5.1":{"exports":"_"},"fly/libs/backbone-1.0.0":{"deps":["version!fly/libs/underscore","jquery"],"exports":"Backbone"},"libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.tabs-1.11.4":["jquery","version!libs/jquery/ui/jquery.ui.core","version!fly/libs/jquery.widget"],"libs/jquery/flexslider-2.1":["jquery"],"libs/dataTables.fixedColumns-3.0.4":["jquery","version!libs/dataTables"],"libs/dataTables.fixedHeader-2.1.2":["jquery","version!libs/dataTables"],"https://sports.cbsimg.net/js/CBSi/app/VideoPlayer/AdobePass-min.js":["https://sports.cbsimg.net/js/CBSi/util/Utils-min.js"]},"map":{"*":{"adobe-pass":"https://sports.cbsimg.net/js/CBSi/app/VideoPlayer/AdobePass-min.js","facebook":"https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js","facebook-debug":"https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/all/debug.js","google":"https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js","google-platform":"https://apis.google.com/js/client:platform.js","google-csa":"https://www.google.com/adsense/search/async-ads.js","google-javascript-api":"https://www.google.com/jsapi","google-client-api":"https://apis.google.com/js/api:client.js","gpt":"https://securepubads.g.doubleclick.net/tag/js/gpt.js","newsroom":"https://c2.taboola.com/nr/cbsinteractive-cbssports/newsroom.js","recaptcha":"https://www.google.com/recaptcha/api.js?onload=loadRecaptcha&render=explicit","recaptcha_ajax":"https://www.google.com/recaptcha/api/js/recaptcha_ajax.js","supreme-golf":"https://sgapps-staging.supremegolf.com/search/assets/js/bundle.js","taboola":"https://cdn.taboola.com/libtrc/cbsinteractive-cbssports/loader.js","twitter":"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js","video-utils":"https://sports.cbsimg.net/js/CBSi/util/Utils-min.js"}},"waitSeconds":300});



Read original article here

Sports

Luka Doncic, Zion Williamson light it up in Dallas Mavericks’ wild win

Leave a comment

12:00 AM ET

  • Steve RichardsESPN

Three of the brightest young stars in the NBA put on a show Friday night as Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis of the Dallas Mavericks and Zion Williamson of the New Orleans Pelicans posted an array of dazzling numbers.

Doncic had a career-high 46 points and 12 assists, Porzingis had 36 points and eight 3-pointers (both season highs) and Williamson had a career-high 36 points on 14-of-15 shooting as the Mavericks won 143-130, their fourth straight victory.

Add in the Pelicans’ Brandon Ingram, who scored 30, and it was the first time in NBA history that four players age 25 or younger each had 30 or more points in a regulation game, according to Elias Sports research. Doncic and Williamson became the second pair of opposing players, each 21 or younger, to both score at least 35 in the same game. Kevin Durant (46 for the Thunder) and Eric Gordon (41 for the Clippers) did it on Jan. 23, 2009, also according to Elias Sports research.

Doncic dominant

Doncic, who had tied his career high with 42 points last Saturday in a high-scoring showdown with Steph Curry, became the fourth player with 45 points and 10 assists in a game at age 21 or younger, joining Trae Young, Isiah Thomas and Michael Jordan, according to Elias.

“Luka went on a run where he hit four or five, like, tough, contested 3-pointers,” Williamson said. “There’s not really a defensive scheme you can do for that. That’s a great player hitting tough shots.”

play

0:34

Luka Doncic takes advantage of a mismatch and sinks a mid-range shot over Willy Hernangomez.

It was the 13th straight 25-point game for Doncic, the third-longest streak by a player at age 21 or younger in NBA history. Only Durant (29 in 2009-10) and LeBron James (16 in 2006) have had longer streaks at age 21.

Doncic is the only player in Mavericks history with 40 points and 10 assists in a game — and he has done it eight times (seven regular season, one playoffs).

Dynamic duo

Doncic and Porzingis combined to score or assist on 103 points, and Doncic scored on all eight half-court defenders he faced. Porzingis was 4-for-5 (all 3-pointers) off Doncic passes. Overall, the Mavericks were 12-for-17 off Doncic’s passes.

“Tonight was one of those games where things were clicking for both of us, and he’s finding me open on the 3-point line,” Porzingis said. “It gives both of us energy and just builds the momentum for both of us and the team when we get going like that and we’re knocking down shots and making that extra pass. It just felt easy and natural. Not every game is going to be like that, but I believe that we’re on the right path.”

play

0:42

Kristaps Porzingis stays hot from beyond the arc as he sinks the triple as time expires in the first half.

“They’re both great offensive players. They’re both very unique. They fit together extremely well,” Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. “Their games complement one another very well. The chemistry tonight was tremendous. Balls were delivered on time, on target — people stepping into shots in rhythm. It was great stuff to watch.”

Doncic, who was born in Slovenia, and Porzingis, of Latvia, became the first teammates born outside of the United States to each score 35 or more points in a game. Their 82 combined points are the second most in history by a pair of teammates born outside of the 50 states and the most ever in a regulation game, according to Elias Sports research. (Tim Duncan and Tony Parker of the Spurs combined for 85.)

Zion nearly perfect

While he missed his one shot outside the paint, Williamson went 14-for-14 in the paint. The only player with more makes without a miss in the paint in a game over the past 25 seasons is Hakeem Olajuwon in 1998.

“Williamson was ridiculous. I mean, unbelievable what he can do on a basketball floor,” Carlisle said.

play

0:23

Zion Williamson drives baseline and rises for the two-handed jam.

Williamson joins Derrick Rose as the only players 20 or younger to go 10-for-10 or better in a half over the past 25 seasons. Rose was 10-for-10 in the second half on March 18, 2009, at the Thunder.

Williamson is the youngest player in NBA history with a game of at least 30 points on 90% shooting or better, surpassing Dwight Howard, according to Elias Sports research.

The ugly side

While all the gaudy numbers are fun for fans to look at, they figure to give both coaches nightmares as they try to coax some defense from their teams. The Pelicans allowed 50 3-pointers in their past two games, the most allowed by any team in a two-game span in NBA history. (In addition to the 25 made by the Mavs, New Orleans also gave up 25 long balls against the Bulls on Wednesday.)

“We did every possible thing tonight. They scored against everything,” Pelicans coach Stan Van Gundy said. “They hit 3s against everything. We switched. We got up on pick-and-rolls. We dropped on pick-and-rolls. We played zone. It didn’t matter. Nothing we did made any impact on them whatsoever. We’re playing abhorrent defense. Our defense is ridiculous.”

“The ESPN crowd got a real treat tonight in terms of entertainment, but it was a pillow fight on defense,” Carlisle said.

Material from ESPN NBA reporters Tim MacMahon and Andrew Lopez, and ESPN Stats & Information was used in this report.

Read original article here