The way LeBron James played Friday night at American Airlines Center, it brought back memories of former Mavericks’ coach Don Nelson from the early 2000s.
He was asked before a game who was going to guard Shaquille O’Neal.
“I’m not sure,” he responded, “but whoever does is probably going to get his butt kicked.”
That was the case with James on Friday as he proved that it’s still his NBA world and the rest of the league – Luka Doncic included – is just waiting their turn while they watch his wondrous talents.
The 35-year-old James was sensational with 35 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists as he and Kyle Kuzma led the Los Angeles Lakers to a dominating 129-114 victory over the Mavericks, which dropped them to 2-3 on this home stand that ends Saturday against Philadelphia.
The Mavericks reached the midpoint of the season in terms of home games played with a disappointing 11-10 record.
If Friday’s game had been a musical act, it would have been Boyz II Men, with LeBron and the Lakers clearly playing the role of the Men.
The Mavericks aren’t playing their best basketball right now and that’s bad timing when the Lakers show up. They aren’t one of the favorites for the NBA championship for no reason.
They shoved the Mavericks around. They dominated early, never let the Mavericks have any real hope and eventually breezed out of town with a win, their third against the Mavericks this season against one loss as the regular-season series is over.
And the Lakers did it all without one of the best players on the planet. Anthony Davis was out with a back injury. But they took care of business the way great teams do.
The Lakers even flustered Luka Doncic, at least in the first half. Doncic had to fight through multiple defenders, which showed in his body language. In the end, it was one of the Mavericks’ worst losses of the year. And another shining moment in a career full of them for James, who showed why this is still his time.
So how did the Lakers get under Doncic’s skin? Part of it was not putting him on the free-throw line. He shot only three free throws in the first half, when the Lakers rolled up a 79-58 lead.
“I think we set the tone early, offensively,” said Jared Dudley, a deep reserve for the Lakers who took on a bigger role with Davis out. “We’re up 10 or 15 and he (Doncic) had to go into aggressive mode.
“He flares and tries to oversell it and when you’re on the ground and you got LeBron running down 95 miles per hour for a three, it deflates you. They did it to us when we played them at home. We were complaining about foul calls, they hit 18 to 20 free throws and it deflated us. Every time I saw him fall to the ground, get the ball out fast and make them pay every single time.”
Said Dwight Howard: “I think we were just trying to be physical with him, force him to take tough shots, pressure him from the jump ball all the way to the end of the game. He’s a really great player.
“We love watching him, but tonight, it was like: No Luka, no Luka.”
Doncic still finished with 25 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. But he also had six turnovers.
At one point late in the first half, a frustrated Doncic ripped the front part of his jersey.
“He was trying to do Superman,” Howard said. “And Hulk Hogan. He was a little upset. It’s understandable. Sometimes all of us want to rip our jersey and go crazy. But he’s an unbelievable young player, super talented. He’s doing an amazing job with this team.”
And at 20, even with unfair comparisons to James, Doncic is handling the pressures of NBA stardom well, said somebody who should know.
“He’s well beyond his years,” James said. “He shows that both on the floor and off the floor. And obviously, there’s no question that they have a great one here.”
There is no shame in losing to the Lakers. This is a team built to win championships now. The Mavericks believe they have the makings of a title contender some day. But they aren’t there yet.
The Lakers most certainly are.
Twitter: @ESefko
Share and comment