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Dave McMmenamin
Dallas – Tears fit Doncic“Eyes and he buried his head in a towel on Wednesday evening, back in a building called his home NBA for 6½ season in front of the shop that turned his world upside down.”
Return to Mavericks for the first time as a member Los Angeles LakersDoncic was awarded his former franchise with a long tribute to the video during the show. When Jumbotron flashed the amazing range of basketball peaks that made Doncic trying to keep together.
“After this video, I was like,” There is no way to play this game, “Doncic said. “It was so many emotions.”
He did not just play, dominated, dominated and provided a painful reminder for every MAVS fan in the presence of a player with whom the franchise said goodbye in agreement with Lakers in February and got Anthony Davis, Max Christie And the future selection from the first round.
At the end of the night, when Doncic checked in with 45 points after tying the season and led LA to the 112-97 victory, which secured the playoffs of the playoffs, it was all from him and his teammates, who swarmed him and sang with “Luka!” Cocophony from the crowd.
“Great time, because everyone had their backs,” Doncic said about sharing the moment with his new team. “Everyone had their backs, from coaches to players, and we’re trying to build something special here. It was really, really, really nice to see.”
Coach Lakers JJ Redick, the dead joined that he would like to see a few more points from Doncic, “” I thought he would get 50, I was disappointed. “But in all sincerity, he said he believed his team a big step forward.
“Greg (St. Jean) told me,” It will be amazing for our group to go through it with him, and to go through it with them, “Redick said about his interview with one of the coaches assistants to his employees. “Does that mean we’ll win the NBA championship or get to the final of the conference? I don’t know. But it was a wonderful moment for everyone.”
Well, not everyone.
Throughout the night, when the Lakers went to the free throw line, the loud “Fire Nico!” The scandals bounced throughout the American Airlines Center. Nico Harrison, President of MAVS Basketball Operations and CEO responsible for bringing a business concept to LA, spent a game standing in a tunnel near Midcourt, mostly from a perspective.
Shortly after Doncic checked out with 1:34 the remaining in the fourth and victory in his hand, the crowd reconsidered his “Fire Nico!” She sings several times for a good measure.
The day was a spectacle as it was a basketball game. The fans gathered on the square, where the statue of Dirk Nowitzki stands in front of the arenas before the tip, some celebrated Doncic’s return and others to vent their frustration that Doncic had to return. There were a sign. There were singing. One fan dressed in the blue jersey Doncic Mavs, Mavs Shorts and a few Doncic Signature Jordan sneakers, spent the afternoon running 77 rounds around the arena in its own form of non -violent protest.
Doncic emotions reflected the base of fans.
“It was a bit of both, happy and angry,” Doncic said about what he felt when he pulled himself into the arena in his apocalypse Hellfire. “But it’s nice to see some familiar faces here. … I really appreciate the fans, the way they responded to me.”
MAV placed T -shirts on each seat with “Hval for everything”, printed with gray letters on the front, Slovenian phrases translated “Thank you for everything”. And the seats were full of important characters from Doncic’s Time in Dallas, such as Nowitzki and former MAVS owner Mark Cuban, who wore a Davis T -shirt.
It was a quiet night for Davis, playing only in his eighth game with Mavs after the missing time with the left tension of Aductor. He ended up with 13 points with 5 to 13, 11 rebounds and six assists. Christie scored 11 from the bench against his former team.
After the final buzzer, Doncic went around the playground and hugged his former teammates as well as Kansas City Chiefs Quarterback (and Mavs Superfan) Patrick Mahomes, his parents and Davis.
“We were both caught (guard), surprised (shop),” Davis said. “But that was two months ago. It happened. We can’t do anything about it now. He just told him,” Good game. “He played hell. ”
Doncic scored 14 points in the first quarter of 5 Pro-9 shooting and helped La to keep up with Dallas, while playing his second night back after he lost in Oklahoma City on Wednesday. He had 31 points in the half-time and finished the 16-PR-28 shooting game from the field (7-Z-10 out of 3), with eight rebounds, six assists and four theft.
“He got to the rhythm soon,” Redick said, “and the rhythm never really lost.”
Before the match, coach Mavs Jason Kidd was thinking about the store and referred to another infamous exchange between New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. “The shops will happen, it will not be the last business,” Kidd said. “Some compared it with Babe Ruth, which is a bit cool.”
Like the clumsy comparison, due to the “bambino curse” that persisted in Boston, it was for a team that said goodbye to Ruth, barely “cool”, MAVS members made him a place to be welcomed to Doncic. Dallas Center Dereck Lively II Replaced signed jerseys with Doncic. And a big man Daniel Gafford He was glad that the organization recognized Doncica as it was.
“I saw that he was crying on his homage (video),” Gafford said. “I just whispered,” as he should. “… it was a great night for him.”
LeBron Jameswho scored 19 out of his 27 points in the second half to help avert an attempt to comeback Mavs, and was also surprised by the performance of his new teammate.
When James was told that Doncic said he wasn’t sure how he pulled him so well, the star Lakers said, “You can call it experience outside the body because he was locked from start to finish.”
And now that his return to Dallas was completed and finished, Doncic was asked if he felt that he had found closure after the shop.
“It’s a difficult question,” Doncic said. “It’s definitely a bit more. I’m talking about closing, sometimes hard because I spent a lot of time here. Great moments. But more and more (normal).
“Now I have to concentrate on different things.”
Tim Macmahon ESPN contributed to this report.
