Sasa Doncic responds to Brian Windhorst’s comments about Luka Doncic being a difficult person to deal with in the locker room.
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Following their first-round elimination at the hands of the L. A Clippers, the Dallas Mavericks seem to be having an eventful offseason. With their second-best player Kristaps Porzingis severely underperforming, the Mavs are expected to be on the lookout to surround their generational talent, Luka Doncic, with all the right pieces.
While that may be the aim, rumours of Luka being a difficult teammate have been doing the rounds in the league. First came the reports of the Slovenian not having a great relationship with big man Porzingis followed by ESPN analyst, Brian Windhorst’s comments regarding his ability to gel with others.
In a recent appearance on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, Windy had the following to say:
“I don’t know how many people are going to be excited to play with Luka (Doncic). I think Luka is, maybe, a difficult person, He’s a great player but when you watch the Mavericks play, he’s barking at the coach, he’s barking at his teammates, he’s barking at the officials. He’s always barking about something. He can really be an irritable guy.”
Windhorst is certainly right about the Slovenian’s temper tantrums in front of the officials this season however, labelling him a difficult person at such an early stage may be a bit too much.
Sasa Doncic roasts Brian Windhorst for his asinine take regarding Luka Doncic
Windy’ assessment of Luka, talking of his antics on the court and referring to him as an ‘irritable guy’ seemed to have reached the ears of the Slovenian superstar’s father, Sasa Doncic.
A former professional basketball player turned Coach, Sasa had the following to say when asked what he thought of Windy’s analysis:
“I don’t know. Maybe this journalist is probably the biggest basketball genius. So please don’t ask me about it (laughs). I’m telling you, what he is doing in the NBA is more than great. I’m talking as a basketball fan.”
“As a father, I’m very proud of him. He’s not afraid of anybody. He has this heart and guts to compare with everybody. What he’s doing at 22 years old in the NBA, as a European player, I think, nobody does this.”
Sasa’s point about Luka having the heart and guts to compare with everybody is on point. We’ve seen it time and time again. However, what cannot be forgotten is that basketball games are won by teams and not individual players. Only 22 years old, Luka has a lot more to learn and discover about himself as a player and a leader.
Luka is also going to eligible for a super-max contract which the Mavs will be foolish not to offer him. Locked in a 5-year deal, it would be in Luka’ best interest to work on dispelling this opinion of him being a difficult teammate in hopes of attracting talented players to Dallas as the generational talent hope to return next season with a vengeance.
