3 troublesome takeaways from Dallas Mavericks loss to shorthanded Wizards

Takeaway from Dallas Mavericks win over Wizards: 2. Can’t overcome Luka’s struggles

Luka Doncic finished with 22 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and two steals in 39 minutes of action on Thursday night. He was just eight of 21 from the field and struggled from the foul line. It was the second straight game where number 77 failed to top 30 points, and it was a forgettable night for the unbelievable talent.

The Mavs needed the rest of the team to step up on Thursday night, but it just did not happen. Spencer Dinwiddie was fantastic. He finished with 33 points and six assists against his former team, and Dwight Powell had 14 points and seven rebounds, but Dallas did not get enough from everybody else.

The Wizards were doubling Luka and forcing him to give the ball up. All Dallas needed to do was make open shots, but they struggled to do that, especially in the second half. The Mavs scored just 44 second-half points and shot 43.0 percent from the field in another bad loss.

The Mavs bench could not find it on Thursday night as they clearly missed Christian Wood. They were just eight of 29 from the field, and five of those makes came from Tim Hardaway Jr. It was an all-around disappointing loss to a team that did not have their two best players. The biggest letdown on Thursday night was the Mavericks' defense.