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Luka Doncic suffered a disappointing loss due to a foul in Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics, and the Dallas Mavericks star said he apologized to his teammates after the defeat.
“It wasn’t a smart thing to do, especially in this situation, when it’s the finals,” he told Malika Andrews. The NBA Today“We have to give it our all. We’re tired out there … It’s my fault, you can’t do that, especially in the NBA Finals. The regular season is a little different, but you can’t do that in the Finals.”
Malika Andrews ,malika_andrews
Luka Doncic admitted he let Dallas down in Game 3, telling his teammates: “My fault, you can’t do that — especially in the NBA Finals.”
Our interview on fouling out for the first time in the playoffs, needing another pain-killing shot for Game 4, and trying to make history after falling behind 0-3: pic.twitter.com/kRSjL93IHy
Dončić had 27 points, six assists and six rebounds in the 106–99 loss, playing 38 minutes before fouling out in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.
The 25-year-old has been Dallas’ only bright spot in the Finals, averaging 29.7 points, nine rebounds and six assists in the series, but his mistakes on Wednesday proved costly for the Mavericks.
His final foul of the game came when the Celtics got a defensive rebound and Doncic went for the ball in the backcourt. This caused the Mavs to have their best player out of the game for the final four minutes. His four fouls also came in the final eight minutes of the game.
According to The Athletic Joe VardonDončić said that committing so many fouls in such a short period of time “never happened” to him.
“We didn’t play physical,” he said. “I don’t want to say anything. You know, six fouls in the NBA Finals, that’s basically how I’m like (makes motions with palms out). Come on, man. Better than this.”
Now that the Mavericks are down 3-0, they don’t have time to think about Dončić’s foul and need to focus on avoiding the sweep.
Dallas turned the tables in the second half of Wednesday’s game, erasing the Celtics’ big lead and cutting the game to one point, but after Doncic fouled out, the Mavericks’ hopes of a comeback were dashed.
Now the Mavericks will need to overcome a 3-0 deficit to make history and win their first title since 2011, and that effort will start with Doncic staying out of foul trouble.
