Celtics Stole Luka Doncic’s Passing Super Power In Game 1

There are plenty of numbers to note coming out of the Boston Celtics’ 107-89 thrashing of the Mavericks in Game 1 of the NBA Finals:

Boston’s 27-point advantage from 3. Kyrie Irving’s 12 points (not nearly enough). Kristaps Porzingis’ 20 points and three blocks in his first game following a 38-day absence. Jaylen Brown’s 22 points on 12 shots to go with six stocks (three steals and three blocks).

Doncic has played 446 games, including the playoffs, in his career. Only six times has he been held to fewer than two assists. It had never happened in the playoffs until Thursday night, when the Celtics decided they had the horses to play him straight up rather than having to commit to double teams, which in turn allowed their peripheral defenders to stay home on shooters and lob rollers.

“What makes our team really special is we don’t have guys we hide on defense,” Jayson Tatum said. “…We’re not showing [with a second defender] or anything like that because that can compromise your defense.”

Forcing defenses into this very compromise is Doncic’s super power. He typically leverages his scoring prowess into open 3-point shots and easy rim finishes in his sleep. He’s going to get his 30 points just about every night, and indeed he did so in Game 1, but when he creates another 25-30 points via 10-12 assists, that’s when it gets overwhelming.

It was apparent on Doncic’s first bucket of the game that Boston was going to trust its primary defender rather than giving him passing lanes when Brown found himself isolated on Doncic as he backed into the paint. Typically, a second defender would’ve dropped down to help, leaving a shooter open for an easy kick-out 3. But watch how Holiday stays connected to Kyrie Irving and White does the same with P.J. Washington, and the Celtics happily live with Doncic having to convert a tough mid-range jumper.

This is the tradeoff. Doncic can make all the contested two-point shots he wants, but the Celtics almost never lose when they’re on the plus side of the 3-point ledger. If they don’t let the Dallas support staff get going from beyond the arc, Doncic is going to have a hell of a time making enough shots like this to keep up, especially when Irving isn’t pulling his weight.

Here you see it again, with Doncic getting downhill against Tatum in the second quarter. Holiday stunts down but only as a show as he immediately reverts back out to Irving, and more important, Horford is committed to Washington in the corner. Doncic, with nobody open, is forced to take a contested layup, which he fails to make.

It’s a cardinal sin to help off a strong-side corner shooter, but guys do it all the time. It’s human nature to react, or overreact, to a superstar scorer making his way toward the rim, but Horford was consistent with his execution. Late in the second quarter he again resisted the urge to come to the aid of Tatum, who was clearly beaten by Doncic, because he knew it was more important to stay connected to Maxi Kleber in the corner.