Watch: Skip Bayless blasts Luka Doncic in fiery rant after Mavericks fall to 3-0 in NBA Finals
Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks went down 3-0 in the NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics after dropping Game 3 on Wednesday, 106-99. It was a defeat that veteran sports journalist Skip Bayless largely blamed on what he believed was another underwhelming performance from the Slovenian superstar.
The host of FS1's "Undisputed" made his sentiments known in a fiery video rant he posted on X/Twitter, underscoring that for all the heart Dallas showed in Game 3, the general play of Doncic, who fouled out late in the fourth quarter. did not help the team's cause.
Bayless said:
"I actually thought that when Luka fouled out that the Dallas Mavericks finally got a break and they gonna win the basketball game because it was Kyrie Irving's night. ...I'm sorry, I got so tired watching Luka tonight play little to no defense. I know he was trying as hard as he could but all he could do was to hold, grab and reach, foul and foul out."
He added:
"So much ball-hogging, so much shot missing in crucial key moments, so much complaining to every ref until they would not give him any call because they got so sick and tired of Luka like I did. I'm sorry. At least they showed some heart, some fight and some guts, but that's it for the Dallas Mavericks, they just got swept."
Check out the video Bayless posted on X below:
Luka Doncic and the Mavericks got control of the contest in the opening half but saw the Celtics turn things around in the third quarter, where they turned a 51-50 deficit into an 85-70 lead heading into the final frame.
Dallas went down by as much as 21 points, 91-70, early in the fourth but fashioned a spirited comeback to cut the deficit to just three, 93-90, midway into the final quarter.
Unfortunately, with 4:12 to go, Doncic was called for his sixth and final foul, which proved to be costly, as the Mavericks lost steam and fell to defeat.
At the time of his exit, Doncic had 27 points, on 11-of-27 shooting, to go along with six rebounds and six assists. Kyrie Irving top-scored for Dallas with 35 points.
Luka Doncic expresses frustration over fouling out in Game 3
Doncic was left frustrated after failing to finish the all-important Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday after fouling out. He felt that some of the calls on him were thin and that they should be allowed to play more physically.
The five-time NBA All-Star drew his fifth and sixth foul in the span of 30 seconds late in the fourth quarter, with the last one a blocking foul on Boston Celtics's Jaylen Brown with 4:12 to go in the game.
In the post-game press conference, Luka Doncic shared his frustrations with the officiating:
"We couldn't play physical I don't wanna say nothing but six fouls in the NBA Finals ... like this? Come on, man. Be better than that."
The Mavericks will try to stay alive at American Airlines Center and avoid getting swept in the finals in Game 4 on Friday.