Luka Doncic’s historic night against the Knicks was fueled heavily by his success in pick and roll situations, scoring nearly half (27) of his 60 points in an overtime victory that saw the Mavericks erase a nine-point deficit with 34 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
Asked about his ability to thrive in the pick and roll, Doncic seemed to call out the Knicks’ unwillingness to adjust on defense, which seemed to doom New York in a fourth straight loss.
“I mean, we know New York is not gonna double,” Doncic said. “I love the pick and roll, I think everybody knows that. So just keep rolling the pick and roll.”
So, with Dallas convinced that Tom Thibodeau and the Knicks wouldn’t adjust their defensive scheme, Doncic and company kept going to the pick and roll well, and turned it into one of the most improbable wins in the past two decades.
Doncic’s comments about the Knicks’ defensive strategy isn’t new. Just two days before, after the 76ers erased a 14-point deficit to beat New York on Christmas Day, Georges Niang questioned why the Knicks defense played in a drop coverage down the stretch, saying he hadn’t seen such a scheme since his college days.
Whether the team’s defense being publicly called out for the second straight game leads to Thibodeau making adjustments remains to be seen, but between Doncic’s comments and Thibodeau not changing his rotation despite being so shorthanded on Tuesday night, even in overtime, the head coach is hearing plenty of criticism from his own fans during this losing streak.
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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