Luka Doncic gives brutally honest apology to teammates after inexcusable blunder

The Dallas Mavericks took their toughest loss of the season on Wednesday night as they lost 106-99 to the Boston Celtics in Game 3 of the 2024 NBA Finals. This was their perfect chance to jump back into this series, but their remarkable fourth-quarter comeback fell short.

Dallas was within striking distance of making this a 2-1 series and having serious momentum heading into Game 4, but the Celtics defense continues to put on a masterclass.

Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving led the way for the Mavericks in this game, but Doncic made one mistake at the end of the game that could have changed everything.

Luka Doncic apologized to teammates after fouling out in Game 3

As Jaylen Brown was driving to the bucket with just over four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Doncic tried to take a charge. Doncic already had five fouls at the time, and the referees called a blocking foul on Doncic, causing him to foul out.

Doncic told the bench to challenge the call, they did, and the challenge was deemed unsuccessful. He had fouled out for the first time that he had fouled out in his playoff career, and now he had to watch from the bench.

Doncic trying to take a charge at this moment and putting his availability for the rest of the game in the officials' hands was a questionable decision, and he told his teammates sorry after the game according to an exclusive interview he had with ESPN's Malika Andrews.

"My bad, you can't do that," Doncic told his teammates. "Especially in the NBA Finals."

Doncic's desire to win an NBA Championship is as strong as ever, and him owning up for fouling out and putting his team at a disadvantage shows that he took accountability for his actions. It would have been easy to make an excuse when Andrews asked him about it, but he owned up for his blunder.

The referees weren't letting the Mavs play physically in this game, and there were definitely a couple of questionable calls down the stretch, but Doncic can't attempt to take a charge in this situation. His offense is too valuable to the team, and him not being on the floor was a huge blow during those clutch minutes.

Doncic knows he has to be better for the Mavs to win the NBA Finals, and his belief is still there. He is one to never give up, and the Mavs have the chance to make a small step towards making history tonight in Game 4.

For all the latest on Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks, stay plugged in with us as we'll have you covered.