The Dallas Mavericks are currently taking on the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals, where the Mavericks currently find themselves in a 1-0 deficit, with an important Game 2 set for Friday night.
Game 1 was not particularly close, with the Warriors beating the Mavericks by 25 points. Dallas will need to figure out their issues if they want to make this series a competitive one against a team that has proven playoff success throughout the years.
Mavericks star guard Luka Dončić will need to be his usual brilliant self for the Mavericks to compete. The Warriors held him in check on Wednesday; he finishedg the game with 20 points while only shooting 33 percent from the field.
It appears that the Warriors still realize that Dončić is a threat at all times, and can go for a huge game at any moment.
Warriors forward Draymond Green discussed how the team matches up with Dončić in this series, and he said that Luka reminds him of LeBron James on Friday’s episode of his The Draymond Green Show podcast (on Colin Cowherd’s The Volume network).
“One of the main, glaring similarities that stick out at you is how those two guys can manipulate a defense and control the pace of the game. At their size with their passing ability and the way they can put pressure on the rim, on the defense and with the vision that they have — they’re a lot alike. There are not many people in this game that can control a game, control the tempo and pace of a game like that.”
But Green added that these’ players games do differ slightly in terms of their approach on offense.
“Bron will take more transition opportunities, where Luka kind of doesn’t unless it’s a complete run out. I also think Luka, as great of a passer as he is, looks for his shot a little bit more than LeBron. They definitely have similarities. And then you look up and it makes sense, because Luka has said that LeBron is his favorite player.”
"It feels a lot like playing against LeBron, playing against Luka every possession"@Money23Green sees a lot of similarities between @KingJames and @Luka7Doncic pic.twitter.com/DAHKlfvZCY
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) May 20, 2022
These comments from Green are interesting when you think about previous reports stating how James may want to team with Dončić in the future.
Green is right in many aspects of his assessment of the two players. Maybe so much so that the fit may be a bit awkward if they ever did team up because they both work best when they have the ball in their hands.
Dončić is certainly not worried about any fantasy pairing with LeBron at the moment, as he currently has his hands full with the Warriors at the moment in the deepest playoff run he has had in his career to date.
