The Dallas Mavericks nabbed a superstar-in-the-making when they traded for Luka Doncic in last year’s NBA Draft.
Very few knew how good he could be when faced against the league’s best. But with a year under his belt, everyone now knows that Doncic is going to be a big star beginning with the 2019-20 season.
He accomplished something last season that only 1961 Rookie of the Year Oscar Robertson did when Doncic averaged 21.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.0 assists a night. They are the only rookies to average at least 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists per game.
What’s next for last year’s Rookie of the Year? Here are three early goals for Doncic heading into his second year in the NBA.
3. Become a better defensive player
Coach Rick Carlisle told The Dallas Morning News that he believes that Doncic’s conditioning needs improving and it’s something that the incoming sophomore has been working on throughout the summer.
“It's just a natural progression that every player needs to have going from Year 1 to Year 2, especially someone like Luka that had such a great first year,” Carlisle said. “People are really going to be coming for him in his second year, and the continued work on body and conditioning and developing his game is going to keep moving him in the direction of becoming a really great player.”
According to Mavs.com’s Dwain Price, Doncic says the better conditioning should help him defensively.
“I would say I’m faster now,” Doncic said. “So (my defense is) going to get better, for sure.”
Opponents challenged his defense last season because of his lack of lateral quickness. If he has indeed improved his speed and quickness, then we should expect the 20-year-old stud to be better than average defensively next season.
But if he’s going to take the leap toward all-time greatness, then his next step should be to become one of the better two-way players in the league.
2. Average 10 assists a game
Doncic has excellent court vision which allowed him to dish the rock effectively in his first year in the league. With more help on the offensive end, Doncic can focus more on being a distributor while continuing to be a threat to score.
With scorers such as Tim Hardaway Jr. and Kristaps Porzingis, as well as shooters like Seth Curry and Courtney Lee around him, the stage is set for Doncic to average at least 10 assists per contest.
As a player with a facilitator mindset with more weapons around him, Doncic knows that it’s his responsibility to make them better by giving the ball to his talented teammates where they can score best.
If he was able to average six assists with last season’s roster, imagine what he can do with two All-Star-caliber players this time?
1. Make the All-Star team
The ultimate personal goal for Doncic this coming season is to make the All-Star team for the first time in his career. After barely missing out on the opportunity last season, Doncic is more than capable of making the squad this time around.
He will have plenty of competition, however, as the west is loaded with a number of All-Star-worthy players.
As a rookie, the Mavericks forward was the second-highest vote-getter in the Western Conference after the league released the third round of fan-voting results. He was also third overall behind only LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Unfortunately, Doncic suffered in the players and media balloting, with each one accounting for 25 percent of the votes that determined the starters. The coaches also dismissed him as a reserve, paving the way for the Slovenian to be highly motivated to make the All-Star team in his sophomore season.
With Kevin Durant no longer in the west (and also out for the entire year with an Achilles injury even if he were traded to a western squad), an All-Star berth is certainly one goal that Doncic will definitely aim for.
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