The combination of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving of the Dallas Mavericks is one of the most interesting and exciting backcourt duos in the NBA right now.
Dallas is still struggling to climb higher than the eighth seed but there is no denying that Doncic and Irving are a great partnership.
But Shaquille O’Neal says that both Doncic and Irving suffer from “the same problem.”
Speaking on NBA on TNT, via House of Highlights, O’Neal said that Doncic and Irving shouldn’t see their numbers dip as they play better and better.
He received some pushback from Charles Barkley but O’Neal stuck to his opinion, stating that he and other NBA greats, like Michael Jordan, didn’t see diminished scoring when they started to take over the league.
So far this season, Irving is scoring 25.6 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 5 assists per game.
Those numbers are indeed a dip down from last year, but just a little one.
As for Doncic, he is scoring 34.6 points, 9 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game.
Those totals are actually up from last season.
In fact, Doncic is currently leading the league in points per game and that is one of the reasons why he is in the running for MVP this season.
It is very common to see two players produce slightly diminished numbers when they start to win more.
This is often because they have a strong team around them and are sharing the ball more often.
They might not be scoring as much but they are often winning more often.
In the end, it doesn’t matter how much Doncic or Irving score, as long as the Mavericks are earning victories.
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