“Say it on TV”: JJ Redick and Luka Doncic make hilarious quip on All-Defensive team bid
In his sixth NBA season, Luka Doncic is considered one of the elite scorers in the league, with how effortlessly and efficiently he plays. Interestingly, JJ Redick mentioned on his "The Old Man & The Three" podcast that the Dallas Mavericks star has been playing incredible defense this season.
Doncic agreed and wanted Redick to promote it more whenever he goes live on television.
"You should say it on TV," Doncic said. "Push the agenda for NBA's second defensive team." (49:49 mark)
With how the NBA is played in today's day and age, making the effort defensively can often be overlooked or forgotten by teams. Scoring a lot of points is always entertaining for the fans and something that most teams in the league thrive on, given the amount of space and shotmaking ability present in the NBA.
However, defense remains an important asset in playing the game, especially if a team is eyeing an NBA championship together as a unit. Building great defensive habits is important, which Doncic has done well this season.
Despite not being known as a defender like Draymond Green or a two-way player like Kawhi Leonard, Luka Doncic has a defensive rating of 114.8 this season. Aside from the numbers, the eye test doesn't lie as well as ESPN's Zach Lowe pointed out that the Mavericks star has improved his "anticipation on ball movement patterns" and "lateral quickness" against opposing players.
Luka Doncic talked about Dallas Mavericks' improvements at the defensive end this season
Winning in the NBA is no easy feat to accomplish, placing more emphasis on being a good offensive and defensive team at the same time. When it comes to the Dallas Mavericks, Doncic acknowledges the strides the team has taken in improving defensively, as per Sports Illustrated's Dalton Trigg.
"Everyone says, 'your best offense is your defense,'" Doncic said. "We play good defense, we get rebounds, we run the floor and I think we're one of the best teams in the NBA to do that. You have to score more points than the other team."
The team has gotten their fair share of bad luck when it comes to staying healthy throughout the season. This has resulted in chemistry and communication issues on a few occasions, especially at the defensive end. However, Doncic argued that the team has been better at that end over their last 10 games. In that span, the Dallas Mavericks secured 10 wins.
Although the wins have come from great stretches of offense, led by Luka Doncic, the team has looked committed to getting stops at crucial points of the ball game to secure victory. The team's defensive identity remains a work in progress but is still a step in the right direction.
With the strong mentality that Luka Doncic has shown in his efforts to try at the defensive end, the rest of the team has followed confidently behind him.