Luka Doncic owns Mavericks' 'pretty bad' start - now it's time to step up

The Dallas Mavericks dropped their second game of the season on Thursday night as the Houston Rockets defeated them 108-102 on their home floor. Dallas looked like a completely different team from the one that beat the Minnesota Timberwolves just two nights before, and Houston's dominance on the glass and the Mavs' constant fouling were two of the big reasons that led to this loss.

Dallas trailed by as little as three points down the stretch in this game, and they climbed all the way out of a 23-point hole to make it a game. The Mavs never trailed in this contest, and their slow start plagued them early on.

The Mavs trailed 34-21 at the end of the first quarter, and there was no flow to their offense. The first quarter is typically the time that Luka Doncic figures out how the referees are calling the game and how the other team is defending him and adjusts accordingly, but his recent slow starts are starting to pile up and hurt Dallas.

Doncic takes blame for slow start, sets expectations to improve

Against Houston, Doncic shot 5-13 from the field and 2-4 from the free throw line in the first half, and he picked up three fouls. Doncic was missing shots that he typically knocks down, and he is quite aware of his strugglesome starts.

After the game, Doncic took the blame for the team's slow start, and he knows that he has to be better.

"That's me," Doncic said when asked about the team's slow start. "I’m just starting pretty tough, pretty bad. So I’ll take the blame because I got to do way better than that."

Doncic then emphasized that he knows he has to step it up early in these games, and the numbers for the entire season show just how poorly he has been starting games.

Doncic is averaging 5.8 points per game while shooting 29 percent from the field and 9.1 percent from downtown in the first quarter of games this season, and he has to start beginning these games strong to put the Mavs in a good spot to take command of the game early. Oftentimes last year, Doncic and the Mavs would take over the game from the opening tip, and Doncic's strong play early on would help set the tone for Dallas and put them in a great spot to play their game for the game's entirety and cruise to a win.

That has not been the case in the 2024-25 season, and that starts with the team's superstar, Luka Doncic.

Him realizing that he has to be better at the beginning of games is a big step in the right direction, but doing something about it is a completely different story. And that should come with time.

It's hard to gauge exactly where he is at when it comes to getting into a full rhythm, and it's important to remember that he did miss the entire preseason with a calf contusion. He should be able to turn these slow starts around once he gets his legs underneath him, and he said that he is "just trying to get back into my rhythm" after missing all four preseason games.

After the game, Doncic said that he "felt a little bit like myself" in the fourth quarter when he erupted for 15 points on 6-8 shooting from downtown, and those types of spurts show just how dominant he can be when he is in rhythm.

Doncic has to be fully locked in on just playing the game early on rather than falling into the trap of being overly focused on foul baiting to be able to dominate like everyone knows he can, and Sunday night's test against the Orlando Magic should be the perfect chance for him to do that.

His constant battles with the officials also aren't doing him any favors either, as his decision to continuously argue with the referees takes away his concentration from being at his best. Doncic's passion is one of the strong points of his game, but he has to find a way to keep complaining to a minimum to reach his full potential.

Doncic's habitual complaints to the referees are arguably the biggest flaw in his game, and despite him keeping it to a minimum over several of the first few games, his emotions got the best of him against the Rockets.