J.J. Barea sees one major difference between Luka Doncic at age 21 and Dirk Nowitzki back when he was a spry young star chasing a championship.
“With Dirk, it was almost impossible to beat him in a 3-point contest,” Barea said Sunday. “With Luka, I got a chance.”
Beyond that, and the fact that they play different positions, Barea and the rest of the Mavericks can see a lot of similarities between the greatest player in franchise history and the youngster now charged with being the next great Maverick.
The first 10 days in Orlando have shown coach Rick Carlisle, as well as the veteran Barea, that Doncic will not be intimidated in the slightest by the playoffs.