Dallas Mavericks: Luka Doncic’s buzzer-beater is a must-see

The Dallas Mavericks fell to the Portland Trail Blazers at home last night in overtime. The game never would have made it to overtime had Luka Doncic not been in the right place just before the clock expired in regulation.

Halleluka indeed. The Dallas Mavericks took on the Portland Trail Blazers last night in yet another road game for a Dallas team who does not like being away from home one bit. Coming into the game on a five-game losing streak, the Mavs were hoping for some good fortune and maybe a little bit of defense. They didn’t get either, but they did get potentially the highlight of the year.

Let’s preface this shot just a little bit. The Mavs had played the Blazers tough all game, with the Mavs playing well in the first quarter only to be blitzed by Portland early in the second half. Dallas trailed most of the first quarter until just under three minutes remaining in the game when Wesley Matthews hit a three to put Dallas up 101-100.

Sadly, the Mavs let that lead slip away over the next couple minutes, as an easy Damian Lillard lay-up put Dallas down by three with 44 seconds left. A poorly missed three by Wes led to a drive by Dame who missed a shot with only 14 seconds left. Maurice Harkless tried to follow it up but missed with only a few seconds left. Jalen Brunson got the rebound and forced a foul. Mavs shooting 2.

Naturally, Brunson went up and missed the first free throw. Knowing that the team was out of timeouts and out of any realistic attempt at winning this game, Brunson had to intentionally miss the second free throw. He did so perfectly and the Blazers slapped the ball out of bounds with 0.6 seconds left on the clock. You need 0.3 just to get a shot off.

Jalen Brunson inbounded the ball and everyone in the arena knew who was going to try and get the ball. Luka was being covered up tight by Harkless and had to work just to get Brunson a passing lane. Jalen hit Luka in the hands and, well, what follows is one of the most impressive shots in Dallas Mavericks history.

There is not one ounce of that shot that is in any way easy to perform. Luka is even more incredible than we could have ever imagined. Merry Christmas, Mavs fans.