“He made mincemeat out of a 2x defensive player of the year.… If he keeps this up it’s gonna be hard-pressed for him to not be the best player in the NBA” - Shannon Sharpe believes former ROTY is the best player remaining in the playoffs
Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Dončić has come under immense praise from Shannon Sharpe. The analyst believes the Mavericks star is the best player remaining in the postseason.
On Fox Sports' morning show "Skip and Shannon: Undisputed," former NFL star cited how the Mavericks superstar has made easy work of some great defensive players in the postseason.
He believes Dončić could torch the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference finals. Shannon Sharpe said:
"I don't think it. I know it that Luka Dončić is the best player remaining in the playoffs and I don't need stats to back it up. My eyes are very good.
"When you look at what he's done, you look at the elite level defenders, he made mincemeat out of a two-time defensive player of the year in Kawhi Leonard, he did the same thing to Paul George."
Shannon Sharpe is referring to the series between the Dallas Mavericks and the LA Clippers from a couple of years ago. Dončić was being guarded by Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, two of the game's elite two-way players.
"Luka Dončić is the best player left in the playoffs and I don't need stats to back it up, my eyes are very good. He's made mincemeat out of the best defensive players. If he keeps this up, it'll be hard pressed for him not to be the best player in the world."
— @ShannonSharpe https://t.co/7Cd9gG0Hu5
Is Shannon Sharpe right in calling Dončić the best player remaining in the postseason?
After his incredible performances against the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference semifinals, Luka Dončić has garnered comparisons to Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and LeBron James. This is a testament to the greatness of the Slovenian as he aims to take the Mavericks to the NBA Finals.
In the playoffs thus far, Luka Dončić is averaging 31.5 points, 10.1 rebounds and 6.6 assists while shooting 47.4% from the field and 34.7% from the perimeter along with 1.9 steals per game.
These are incredible numbers from the Dallas Mavericks superstar.
Luka Doncic has 27 points, the Suns have 27 points, and the rest of the Mavericks have 30 points.
Only 2 players in the entire game have more than 5 points (Doncic 27 and Dinwiddie 21). https://t.co/5iGmW4tmSz
He runs the show for the Mavericks as the ball is always in his hands and he is the orchestrator of the offense for the team.
He constantly makes his teammates better by creating open shots for them, while also possessing the ability to score at will by either attacking the rim or from the perimeter.
Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Jayson Tatum remain in the playoffs for their respective teams and they are the ones in the conversation for being the best player remaining in the postseason.
However, Dončić's stat lines quite easily trump all of them and he is playing with a team that is not anywhere near as good as the Boston Celtics or the Miami Heat.
All these reasons make Shannon Sharpe's statement seem more and more plausible.