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Mavericks' Luka Doncic finally gets credit he deserves after continuous disrespect

Will Miller
Will Miller

The Smoking Cuban

Dallas Mavericks v Sacramento Kings / Ezra Shaw/GettyImages

The Dallas Mavericks are in the midst of playing some of the best basketball of their season, as the Mavericks have thrust themselves to the sixth seed in the Western Conference after it looked like Dallas would be trending toward the Play-In Tournament right after the All-Star Break, as Dallas lost five out of six contests coming out of the break.

Every game that the Mavericks play going forward will be of increased importance the closer that the Mavericks get to the playoffs, as Dallas kicks off this 10-game stretch with a wildly important game against the Sacramento Kings tonight.

This game against Sacramento is huge in that it will dictate who has the tiebreaker between the Mavericks and Kings should their records match at the end of the season, as the Mavericks beat Sacramento on Tuesday night in their first contest amid back-to-back games in Sacramento.

Mavericks' Luka Doncic finally gets credit he deserves after continuous disrespect

There are still 10 games left, but this game against the Kings tonight could serve as a huge momentum-swinger for either Dallas or Sacramento as they approach the remainder of the regular season, as the game's result could very well be emblematic of who makes it out of the Play-In Tournament between the Mavs, Kings, and Phoenix Suns.

An exciting result from Dallas' recent success has been the shift in attitude from talking heads in the national media in regard to Luka Doncic's MVP candidacy, as MVP voters typically don't take players seriously for the award if their team isn't at least a top-six seed in their respective conference. With Dallas' recent surge, they are poised to win 50 games and maintain their status as a top-six seed if they take care of business over this crucial stretch.

It's nice to see NBA.com giving Doncic the respect he's deserved all season, as many individuals who haven't kept up with the Mavericks this season are negligent to just how vital Doncic has been to the Mavericks' success all season. Doncic has epitomized consistency this season by playing 63 out of 72 of Dallas' contests thus far, as he's carried the Mavericks through stretches where many other players were injured on their roster.

Doncic is averaging an obscene 33.9 points, 9.8 assists, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game on 48.7/37.4/78.7 shooting splits this season. Mavericks fans have talked relentlessly as to why Doncic's individual play has warranted MVP consideration despite Dallas being lower in the standings earlier this season, as Doncic has evolved into a vocal leader who has been as bought in as he's ever been in all facets of the game.

For more on Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks, stay tuned as we will have you covered.

Will Miller

Will Miller

Will Miller is a senior contributor and is in his second year with The Smoking Cuban. Will has been following the Dallas Mavericks for over a decade and is currently working on getting a Bachelors in Science in Sports Journalism from the University of North Texas, as he is also covering sports for the North Texas TV station. While Will is opening up his coverage to cover other sports for UNT, basketball and the Dallas Mavericks are his true passion and he hopes to continue writing and producing Mavericks related content as his career continues. Will has very solid in-game analysis and knowledge about the intricacies of the game, and has a very broad understanding about the NBA as a whole. Going forward Will is looking to be more expansive in his coverage of the Mavericks beyond writing as well. Outside of writing about the Mavericks, Will enjoys hanging with friends, going to the gym, and watching other sports and live events.