It didn’t take long for the tone to shift from the games in Phoenix to Game 3 of the second round series between the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns. After being challenged publicly prior to the game by head coach Jason Kidd, Luka Doncic was on the floor fighting for a loose ball early in the first quarter. He was, as Kidd would call it, “participating”. That effort provided a surge of energy to others:
“He was more active I think. Either the first or second possession, he was diving on the floor – and when you see the best player doing that it sets the mood,” Dorian Finney-Smith remarked after Game 3, a 103-94 victory for the Mavericks.