Luka Doncic tried, but he couldn’t stop from being posterized by Andrew Wiggins on Sunday night.
In the fourth quarter of Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals, the Warriors forward threw down an absolutely huge slam while making contact with Doncic. The Mavericks superstar threw his head back and initially drew a charge call on Wiggins, but the refs overturned the call after a successful challenge by Warriors coach Steve Kerr.
“It was unbelievable," Steph Curry said. "And we got to see 800 replays because of the challenge so appreciate you, (referee) Marc (Davis). That was nice."
The dunk was mind-blowing by itself, but the fact Luka kinda flopped and Kerr’s challenge was successful must have given the Warriors an extra feeling of satisfaction. It marked the highlight of a 109-100 win by Golden State to take a 3-0 series lead.
"That one was on Luka," Draymond Green said after the game. "It just means more. When you get a poster on a superstar like that, it just means a little bit more."
Given the magnitude of the dunk and the moment, Wiggins was relatively ho-hum about the slam after the game. But that's on brand for the humble All-Star.
"Feeling the energy," Wiggins said. "That's the main thing when I saw the rim. That's all I seen. They tried to take it away from me but Steve challenged and won. So I thank him for that."
Even Luka had to tip his cap to Wiggins after the game.
"I got hit a little bit," Doncic said. "But that was impressive, I'm not gonna lie. I saw a video of it and I was like, 'Oof.' That was pretty incredible. I wish I had those bunnies."
That wasn't the only notable slam Wiggs threw down. A couple minutes later, he also flew in for a left-handed putback dunk.
"He was looking like Dominique Wilkins out there with the dunks he was throwing down," Klay Thompson said.
Wiggins finished with 27 points, a new playoff career high, 11 rebounds and a game-high +22 in plus/minus. He went 11-of-20 from the field and attempted more than 17 field goals for the first time in his playoff career. Through the first eight games this playoffs, Wiggins averaged 13.3 shots.
Wiggins has been a monster this series for the Warriors, as he played a chief role in shutting down Luka in Game 1 and holding him to two points after halftime.
"You don’t win in the playoffs without guys like Wiggs," Kerr said. "It’s been a brilliant year for him and it’s continued in the postseason."
This isn’t the first monster dunk Wiggins has thrown down this playoffs, as he also dunked hard on Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke in the second round. In the regular season, Wiggins posterized his friend and former Minnesota Timberwolves teammate Karl Anthony-Towns.
Like picking a favorite child, Wiggs can't pick a favorite dunk.
"I feel like I got a lot of nice posters," Wiggins said. "I'll let you guys decide. I don't even know."
Golden State has been prodding Wiggins to stay aggressive and show off his athleticism all season. This series he has been producing at a very high level on both ends of the floor. Considering he slumped in the second half of the regular season after making his first All-Star team, it's been quite the resurgence from Wiggins on the big stage.
"Absolutely incredible," Draymond said. "He's been attacking like that. That's always been our battle cry to him not to lay the ball up but to go dunk. He's been attacking like that all playoffs. He's got a couple posters this playoffs."
Related
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram