Luka Doncic looked dejected for most of the night on Tuesday. With a trip to Vegas and $500,000 on the line, Doncic had one of the worst games of his NBA career. The superstar fought his way to a meager 16 points on a frustrating night by shooting 5-for-15 from the floor and six turnovers.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have made it their personal mission to shut down Doncic and force his supporting cast to beat them. Does this sound familiar? This was exactly the strategy in the NBA playoffs a year ago, in which the Thunder fell by the wayside in six games and were forced to prioritize PJ Washington and the backup team and move into the offseason.

There was no Washington to save Doncic. The former Hornet missed this competition due to illness. All that was left was Oklahoma City’s aggressive defense, which was even more nervous to play against than it was a year ago.

This statement from the Mavericks star will grab all the headlines, but there wasn’t much for the all-world player to do. He was captured near the high-ball-pressure timeline, the Thunder covering on every screen, blitzing on most and worrying about the rest later.

That plan worked out much better for the Thunder this season. Aside from Nnaji Marshall’s 19-point lead, the rest of the Mavericks were held in check due to the Thunder’s roster improvements.

When the Thunder put pressure on Doncic, they were primed for failure. Newcomer Alex Caruso stepped up his game to disrupt the Mavericks inside and proved to be an athletic boost for Oklahoma City as they sprinted away for triples.

Oklahoma City still gave the Mavericks some quality looks, many of which didn’t cash in, but it’s the NBA. You can never take everything away, the goal is to leave out the less attractive option. Does Doncic go one-on-one against even elite defenders? This is a situation Dallas craves.

Force Marshall to take 14 shots, Dinwiddie to take nine more and Grimes to take five? Advantage Thunder. That’s not to say the supporting cast wouldn’t rise to the occasion – which was the case last postseason – but the way Doncic is, that’s not a certainty.

This was exactly the plan that Mark Daigneault laid out in the postseason loss to Dallas a year ago, but now the Thunder are in a position to execute it. They have a small ball at centre-back in Kenrich Williams, a massive defensive improvement in Caruso, and defensive prowess in Hartenstein, which will only be enhanced with the return of Chet Holmgren later this season.

Song of the day: Big in Vegas by Buck Owens

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