Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks are currently out of the playoff picture, but they could have easily been the top team in the West if not for their defense and penchant for blowing double-digit leads.

A lot has been said about the Mavs' poor defense, and while it seems to be repetitive now, it's because it has been an issue since the start of the season that they still haven't resolved. In fact, they made it worse when they traded their best perimeter defender in Dorian Finney-Smith.

On Wednesday, the Mavs' defense doomed them once again. They led by as much as 12 points against the Philadelphia 76ers, but they ended up losing 116-108. It is the 13th time this campaign that Dallas lost a game after leading by double-digits, per Callie Caplan of Dallas Morning News.

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That's 13 games that could have been added to their win tally but ended up getting wasted. Had they protected their leads better, Dallas would have been a 50-win team now and in contention for the top seed in the West instead of being 11th and trying hard to make the Play-In.

Of course some would say that collapses happen and the Mavs couldn't have won them all. But even if they just win half of those games, they would have been a Top 4 team in the West with enough cushion to finish within the Top 6.

While many fans are seeing the Kyrie Irving trade as well as their recent disastrous run as the reason for the massive freefall, it has actually been a season in the making. In the end, Luka Doncic and the Mavs have no one to blame but themselves.