Watch Mavericks @ Clippers Game 5 live on Sky Sports Arena in the early hours of Wednesday morning (2am)
Tuesday 25 August 2020 15:20, UK
Luka Doncic joined Inside The NBA to celebrate Kobe Bryant Day and recalled the time he was trash-talked in his own language by the 'Black Mamba'.
One day after his game-winning buzzer-beater capped a 21-point comeback win against the LA Clippers in Game 4 of their Western Conference first-round series, Doncic joined the Inside crew from his room at the NBA's Orlando campus as the league honoured the memory of Bryant, who was killed along with his daughter Gianna and seven others in a helicopter crash on January 26.
August 24 was designated Kobe Bryant Day by the NBA in honour of the late Lakers legend's eight and 24 jersey numbers.
Asked by host Ernie Johnson to share a memory of Bryant, Doncic recounted a story of being heckled by Bryant in Slovenian from the courtside seats at Staples Center.
"He said some bad words in my language," Doncic said. "I was like, 'who's that being my speaking in my language?' and it was Kobe!
"It was something amazing that I will never forget. After the game I came and took a picture with him. He was one of the guys I always looked up to. I will never forget it."
Even before they began their Western Conference first-round series, the Mavericks were considered a long shot to get past the Clippers. Injuries and ejections early in the best-of-seven series made the road even more difficult, but the Mavericks have overcome those obstacles to twice level the series heading into Game 5, live on Sky Sports Arena in the early hours of Wednesday morning (2am).
Despite playing on a tender left ankle, Doncic put the Mavericks on his shoulders in Game 4, bringing them back from a 21-point first-half deficit and hitting the game-winning three-pointer at the overtime buzzer in the 135-133 victory.
The 21-year-old from Slovenia finished with 43 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists, becoming the youngest player in NBA history with a 40-point triple-double during the playoffs.
Doncic told the Inside The NBA crew that, despite the daunting first-half deficit, he never felt Dallas were out of contention.
"I would never think we were in trouble," he said. There was a lot of the game [left], anything can change. We believed from the beginning and we came together. We started playing better defense and from there we went up."
The Mavericks' comeback culminated in the final seconds of overtime as Doncic's step-back capped a stunning individual performance, sealed a memorable win and restored parity in the series.
"It was amazing. A lot of emotions," Doncic said. "[After] I hit the game-winner, I said the best moment wasn't when I saw the shot go in but when I saw the whole team running towards me. That was very emotional for me. Now we are tied 2-2 with the Clippers, we want to believe, we want to win games. That's why we came here."
Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle was effusive in his praise for his young star in the aftermath of Game 4.
"He has got such a great heart," he said. "Guys like him, Jason Kidd, Larry Bird, these kinds of guys, are such great competitors. Not much will keep them from competing.
"They are from the same fabric in terms of their ability to impact the game in unique forms. It's not just about putting the ball in the basket. It's about giving team-mates confidence."
Doncic also played down his Game 3 set-to with Clippers forward Montrezl Harrell. The pair became involved in a verbal spat in which Harrell appeared to shout a 'white boy' insult at the Slovenian, who had initially sworn at the Clippers big man.
The pair exchanged pleasantries before Game 4 and Doncic told Johnson the players had cleared the air.
"It's the playoffs. There are a lot of emotions," he said. "All the players understand that. In these situations, a lot of players don't say the words they mean. We just cleared out, everything is good. No worries."
