The 2024 Dallas Mavericks remain one of the NBA’s most confusing stories. In their first full season together, the Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving duo had completely figured things out, but the issue they faced was predictably the defensive end of the ball. And yet, after spending the majority of the season near the bottom of the league in defensive rating, and allowing multiple 130+ point games, over the final 20 games of the season, they achieved a flow state unlike anything we’d ever seen. They were defensive juggernauts, shutting down opposing offenses, combining their all time backcourt production with open court athletecism, and three point spacing to make one of the league’s most dynamic teams. And with their NBA Finals appearance factoring in, this is a clear case of the NBA’s 2nd best lock in. #lukadoncic #dallasmavs #nbahistory I will get better.