Late last season, Luka Doncic and his Dallas Mavericks faced off against the Phoenix Suns.
During one of the playoff games, Devin Booker slid on the floor after a foul, laid on the ground for an exaggerated amount of time, then quietly said to sideline photographers, “The Luka Special.”
This was a little dig at Doncic – and it ultimately backfired in a huge way against Booker and his Suns.
The Mavericks destroyed the Suns in the last few games of their series and ended up heading to the Western Conference Finals to face the Golden State Warriors.
Luka since "the Luka Special" was said:
33 PTS, 11 REB, 8 AST
35 PTS, 10 REB, 4 AST
35 PTS, 9 REB, 6 AST
33 PTS, 6 REB, 8 ASTMavs have outscored the Suns by 79 points in that span. pic.twitter.com/aC8UGOOFQL
— StatMuse (@statmuse) December 6, 2022
Since then, Doncic has continued to toy with the Suns, including on Monday night when he and his team dismantled Phoenix, 130-111.
The Suns haven’t figured out how to stop Doncic.
Following Booker’s “Luka Special” comment, Doncic has done tremendous work against the team: 33 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists; 35 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists; 35 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists; and 33 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists.
Since that remark from Booker, the Mavs have outscored the Suns by 79 points.
Will the Mavericks get the last laugh again this season?
Suns Vs Mavericks
A new rivalry has been born: the Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks are definitely enemies on the court.
Right now, the Suns are clearly in a better position: they’re the number one seed in the West with a strong 16-8 record.
As for the Mavs, they are struggling in 9th place with a 12-11 record.
But even though there is a huge gap between their records, the Suns still face serious difficulty against the Mavs.
During Monday’s game, Dallas held Booker to just 11 points, 2 rebounds, and 5 assists.
For one reason or another, Doncic and his Mavs have figured out how to get under Booker’s skin.
That really is something special.
