Mavericks urge Luka Doncic to shed weight for defensive dominance and durability

Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic is undoubtedly one of the most gifted offensive players in the league. However, it is also fairly well-known that he has been viewed as a defensive liability. With a crucial season coming up, sources within the Mavs have suggested that Doncic lose some weight to improve his performance.

Doncic has a very intriguing style of play, one that doesn't necessarily require him to use athleticism to get past defenders. While he is already a bit of an oddity in the guard position, Doncic is quite difficult to play because of his offensive style.

This has yielded very positive results for the Slovenian wonderkid. With a stepback jumper that can't be stopped even if defenders see it coming from a mile away, Doncic is nigh unguardable in most cases. However, for all his offensive brilliance, the Mavs superstar is a glaring defensive liability.

Doncic is known for being a fairly animated character on the floor. Much of his lack of defensive discipline in transition has to do with his disposition. However, there is enough evidence to prove that his shortcomings in half-court defensive sets have to do with his conditioning.

Ahead of the 2021-22 season, after leading the Slovenian team to a fourth-place finish at the Tokyo Olympics, Doncic came into training camp weighing 260 lbs. This was a significant mark above the 230 lbs requirement.

This was also seen last season. While competing in the Eurobasket tournament in 2022, Doncic looked in phenomenal shape. However, by the time he came to Dallas, he was back where he was during the regular season the year prior.

The inconsistency has apparently led key figures in the Mavs organization to speak to the 24-year-old regarding his weight, as per The Athletic's Tim Cato.

With Doncic set to play in the upcoming FIBA World Cup in August, it will be important to see how he transitions to this tournament form before the training camp.

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Next season will be crucial for Luka Doncic and the Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks are heading into the 2023-24 season after a very disappointing end to their 2022-23 campaign. Although they managed to acquire Kyrie Irving, the Mavs careened out of the playoff picture while Irving and Luka Doncic endured the growing pains of playing together.

Needless to say, the upcoming season is crucial. With Kyrie back on board for the foreseeable future, the two Mavericks superstars will need to learn to coexist. How successful they will be in doing so is purely a matter of speculation at this stage.