Luka Doncic’s candid statement following the Mavs-Celtics NBA Finals
Luka Doncic of the Dallas Mavericks addressed the media following Game 5 of the NBA Finals.
Monday night saw Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks suffer a 106-88 defeat to the Boston Celtics in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.
With this victory, the Celtics have secured their first NBA Championship since the 2008 season.
Doncic had appeared on the injury report for every game of the series, although he did not sit out any games.
Following the defeat, a reporter queried him about his injuries (courtesy of NBA TV).
Reporter: “Now that the series is finished, how much were you feeling the effects of your injuries?”
Doncic: “It doesn’t matter how much I was hurting. I was out there. I tried to play. I didn’t do enough.”
In Game 5, Doncic concluded with 28 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, and three steals, making 12 of 25 field goals and 2 of 9 three-point attempts in 43 minutes on the court.
Despite a productive season, the Mavericks finished as the fifth seed in the Western Conference with a 50-32 record. This achievement is significant considering they missed the NBA playoffs in 2023, making their advancement to the Finals just one year later a remarkable feat.
During the regular season, Doncic averaged 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, 9.8 assists, and 1.4 steals per game, shooting 48.7% from the field and 38.2% from three-point range across 70 games.
This Finals appearance marks Doncic’s first in his six-season NBA career, all spent with Dallas. The Mavericks have reached the Western Conference Finals twice since the 2022 season.
