(Photo by Tim Heitman/Getty Images)
Monday night featured a battle between two MVP contenders as the Dallas Mavericks faced off against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Mavericks were up at home throughout most of the game, but the Thunder ultimately came out ahead, scoring a 100-96 victory and tying the series at two games apiece.
On Tuesday morning’s “First Take,” Shannon Sharpe laid the blame at the feet of Luka Doncic.
He said that Doncic is the leader of the team and has to bear the most responsibility, especially because he was having yet another off-night.
Plus, Sharpe said that Doncic’s constant complaining to the refs is hurting his team in serious ways.
.@ShannonSharpe places “a lot” of blame on Luka for the Mavericks’ Game 4 loss
“P.J. Washington has been their best player, and therein lies the problem.” pic.twitter.com/5I9wHT9OQy
— First Take (@FirstTake) May 14, 2024
Doncic wasn’t looking like his regular self during the Game 4 loss.
He scored just 18 points and went 7-of-20 from the field.
He was also ice-cold from beyond the three-point line, netting only 2-of-9.
Meanwhile, the Thunder’s lead star, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was feeling great and landed 34 points, shooting 14-of-27 from the field.
This hasn’t been a great series for Doncic and he has been shooting 39% from the field and only 31% from downtown.
His diminished output comes at an awful time because the Thunder are fast, youthful, and have the ability to score from just about anywhere.
If Doncic isn’t able to keep up, his team will continue to fall behind.
Sharpe said Doncic’s complaints to game officials are harming the Mavericks because he isn’t able to keep up with the rest of his team as they travel back down the court, leading to the Thunder having a 5-on-4 advantage.
He isn’t the only one who has criticized Doncic about this, and the number of people calling on him to change his ways is only getting larger now that the series is tied.
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