Mavericks coach sympathizes with Byron Russell after Luka Doncic crosses him: "I know how you feel when Jordan push you off"

Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks opened their training camp one week before the rest of the teams, as they will have to travel overseas for some preseason games. The Slovenian superstar and the Mavs are preparing for the new season and it looks like they had a good time in practice.

During their practice on Friday, Luka Doncic showed his impressive ball-handling skills. Doncic was training with assistant coach Darrell Armstrong and offered a funny moment, when he tried to drive to the basket, but instead used a crossover to Armstrong, who couldn't guard him and fell to the floor.

Armstrong then went to social media and posted the video, which reminded everyone of the way Michael Jordan had crossed Bryon Russell to hit the game-winner in Game 6 of the 1998 NBA Finals between the Utah Jazz and Chicago Bulls. Russell fell to the floor and Jordan hit the "Last Shot" to help the Bulls close out the series and win their sixth title.

"Bryon Russell, I know how you feel now when Jordan pushed you off for the game winner," Armstrong wrote on an Instagram story.

Luka Doncic and the Mavs preparing for a comeback year after missing out on playoffs last season

Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks ended the 2022-23 season in a disappointing way, as they collapsed in the final games of the regular season leading to an early exit.

However, the franchise will look to turn things around this year and aims at nothing but a deep postseason run. The Mavs kept Kyrie Irving on the team with a new three-year, $126 million contract, while they brought an elite 3-and-D player in Grant Williams via a trade from the Boston Celtics.

Dallas also brought Seth Curry back, while adding EuroLeague star Dante Exum and Derrick Jones Jr. from the Chicago Bulls. Tim Hardaway Jr., Maxi Kleber, and Dwight Powell remained in the team and Dallas head coach Jason Kidd is optimistic about the team's potential this season.

"If you have the right pieces around them, they’re going to co-exist. After day one, they co-exist at a high level. When you talk about two of the best players in the world, they’re going to play at a high level and they’re going to put us in a position to win," Kidd told media earlier in the week, via NBA.com.

The key to the Mavs' success will be the partnership between Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic, who are expected to run the floor. The duo struggled last year when Irving joined the team in February, and Doncic believes it will take some time for the two megastars to build chemistry and find their spots on the court.

"He came in the middle of the season last year. We didn’t have much time. We went straight to playing games. It takes time to build chemistry, especially on the court. We have the whole training camp and the preseason, too. I think it’s going to be way better," Luka Doncic said, via NBA.com.

If the Doncic-Irving partnership works, then Dallas will be in a position to challenge for the championship and return to the Western Conference Finals for the second time in three years.

The Mavs open the regular season with a road game against the San Antonio Spurs and No.1 pick Victor Wembanyama on Wednesday, October 25.