Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks will be licking their wounds after a crushing 4-1 series defeat in the NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics, especially after Skip Bayless‘ cutting remarks.
The Slovenian star was unable to prevent his team from succumbing to defeat in Game 5 on Monday as the Celtics cruised to a 106-88 victory, wrapping up the franchise’s 18th title.
Luka Doncic welcomes soccer legend Sergio Ramos before Game 4 of the NBA Finals
American TV personality Bayless, famous for his previous work on ESPN2’s First Take show with Stephen A. Smith, didn’t hold back in dishing out his criticism.
Bayless is a known critic of LeBron James and is one of few to consistently question his elevated status in the NBA, leading many to suggest he simply isn’t a fan of his work. Now that LeBron’s days are behind him, it seems he is willing to go against the new dominant force in the NBA after turning on Doncic.
“I picked the Dallas Mavericks to win in seven games in the NBA Finals, and I was wrong. I was a fool. But I did so because of Luka Doncic,” Bayless added.
“Luka just stunk for most of this finals. I give Jaylen Brown a lot of credit, and he probably deserved MVP just for his defense on Luka. He attacked him tonight in Game 5 in Boston. But in the end, man, was I disappointed in Luka. His reputation took a big hit with me.”
A comparison to Bill Belichick
Doncic, who had averaged 33.9 points, 9.8 assists and 9.2 rebounds during the 2023-24 season, fell just shy of those averages in all five games in the series.
Aside from his incredible display in Game 4, where he scored 25 points in the first half alone, Bayless accused Doncic of underperforming on the big stage in terms of his three-point throws.
“He shot 38% from 3 during the regular season and 40% from 3 as he lifted the Mavericks to the Western Conference playoffs, which were much tougher than the Eastern Conference playoffs,” Bayless said.
“And then we get to this level, this stage, the finals. Luka went colder than Belichick’s heart, especially in Boston. I couldn’t recognize him.”
Bayless’ reference was to Bill Belichick, the legendary NFL coach who guided the New England Patriots to six Super Bowls between 2000 and 2023. Belichick was notorious for his aloof personality and cold-hearted approach to management.
