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BOMBSHELL: “He only has himself to blame” – The $1M technical foul that just cost Luka Doncic the MVP

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Luka Doncic’s short fuse with referees could turn a historic season into one without postseason recognition.

Extra weight, poor care of his body leading to injuries, inability to control his emotions, defensive lapses — all of these were part of the reason why Nico Harrison decided a little over a year ago to shock the basketball world and trade Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Fast forward to today, and while the harsh criticism once directed at the Slovenian guard for his defensive shortcomings had slowly begun to fade — fueled by a dominant stretch over the past month that propelled the Purple and Gold squad to third place in the West and placed him firmly back in the MVP conversation — all of it has now come rushing back into focus.

In a lopsided defeat at Paycom Arena against the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder, Luka was forced out of the game early after feeling tightness in his hamstring, cutting his night short in worrying fashion.

Doncic will miss out on the postseason awards by just one game

After Shams Charania confirmed that the Lakers will be without the NBA’s leading scorer until the start of the playoffs, social media went into a frenzy.

 

Luka Magic will remain at 64 games played for this season, joining Anthony Edwards and Cade Cunningham as players ineligible for postseason awards by just one game.

Although injuries bothered him slightly this season, the 2024 Western Conference finals MVP should blame himself the most. He missed two games this season due to a trip to Slovenia to attend the birth of his second daughter. This event ended dramatically after his fiancée called the police at the hospital.

Additionally, the 6-foot-8 guard received his 16th technical foul last week, which automatically suspended him for one game, and as things stand now, that very technical foul ended up costing him his second scoring title, a potential MVP award, and a sixth selection to the All-NBA First Team in his career.

Furthermore, without him, the Lakers could fall to fourth place in the Western Conference, which would mean facing the Thunder before the WCF, a team they have lost to in their last four matchups by an average margin of -26.7.

From anotherworldly month in which he scored more points than Anthony Davis did in a Dallas Mavericks uniform since the trade happened, a month in which he was nominated for Defensive Player of the Month and tied Kobe Bryant’s Lakers record for most points in a single month — overnight, everything has turned into a nightmare.

To make matters worse, Doncic received his 16th technical just a few games after the previous one had been rescinded upon the Lakers’ appeal, but the Slovenian superstar clearly did not learn his lesson.

Considering how frequently he complains to referees and gestures after almost every play, placing constant pressure on officials, it is almost surprising he has not accumulated even more technical fouls.

It is a growing source of frustration for daily NBA fans and one that could ultimately shape how Doncic is remembered — as he has handed Shai Gilgeous-Alexander a second straight MVP and scoring title.

And while a season in which he averaged 33.5 points, 8.3 assists, 7.7 rebounds, and 1.6 steals on 47.6 percent shooting will forever be etched in NBA history books as one of the most dominant individual campaigns of all time, a level of production that can never be taken away from him, it may also be remembered as the season in which Doncic received no postseason recognition, undone by the 65-game rule.

Luka has become ineligible for the postseason awards for the second straight season

That does not take away from the fact that Luka is one of the league’s best players, but when the season is ultimately summed up, it is hard to escape the conclusion that his temperament played a decisive role in a campaign that ended without recognition.

At the end of the day, most voters have already said they would not place him first on their MVP ballots because of his poor defense; for the second consecutive season, he will be ineligible for postseason awards due to injuries, while his hot temper has cost him additional accolades.

Maybe Nico wasn’t so crazy after all when he looked toward the future and concluded that Luka simply wasn’t worth a supermax contract?