Luka Dončić did not look like himself on Thursday night.
Part of that was excellent Warriors defense that didn’t allow him or the rest of the Mavs to hunt matchups with reckless abandon like they did vs. the Suns. There also might have been something else at play according to announcer Kevin Harlan.
“I hear he’s sick today,” Harlan said on KNBR Thursday. “I guess he was up most of the night and ill. I’ve heard it now from two different people so I’m assuming it’s probably true.”
Harlan couldn’t confirm if Dončić began feeling sick before the game or if it started after. Either way, Dončić had the worst playoff game of his young career. The Mavs were -30 during his time on the floor and he committed a game-high seven turnovers.
Dončić will only have one day to recover, with Game 2 in Golden State on Friday.
“The body language that he showed, just the zest that he showed in Game 7 in Phoenix was not there last night. And I’m not sure if perhaps he was under the weather [during the game]. He didn’t play like he played in the Suns series, that’s for sure, and he needed every ounce of what he gives them, and that was not apparent.”
Listen to the full interview below. You can listen to every KNBR interview on our podcast page at knbr.com/podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Catch Papa & Lund weekdays from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on KNBR 104.5 / 680 and streaming live on KNBR.com.