In the Western Conference semifinals focus battle, the Lone Ranger fought hard in 4 quarters on the road, and finally lost to the Suns 114-121, and the series was 0-1 behind!
Losing away to the regular season leader Suns is not a surprise, and even in the absence of unexpected injuries on both sides, it is difficult for the Lone Rangers to cross the Suns barrier in 7 games, and the only hope is that other than Doncic, there are no other Wizards who can stand up, just like Brunson's heroic performance in the first round, playing the Suns is caught off guard, but from the G1 point of view, there is no.
In the end, we witnessed Doncic's vigorous and heroic performance in the second round of G1, even if he did not lead the team to win in the end, the media also praised Doncic's performance.
In this game, Doncic played 44 minutes and 23 seconds, only rested for more than 3 minutes, and finally shot 15 of 30, 4 of 11 from three points, 11 of 14 from the free throw line, and under the siege of the Suns, he still bombarded the dominant data of 45 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists, and the super-giant performance once again proved that he was a player born for the big scene.
But obviously, compared to the Suns' all-inclusive soldiers, and their more complete and excellent configuration in each position, even if Doncic did his best to lead the team to a crazy counterattack by cutting 13 points in the fourth quarter, he could only helplessly feel the loneliness of the single-core team after losing.
In today's league, if there are no two stars or more, the chances of winning the championship are almost zero, and even almost eliminated. Therefore, this is also why before the start of the series, the outside world is generally not optimistic that the lone ranger can eliminate the sun. But Doncic's performance in this game, more or less, gave the Lone Ranger a glimmer of hope, and the key is to see if he can continue this state next, riding alone to lead the team to create a miracle.
Before this game, the US media "Clutchpoints" posted: Doncic's performance in the playoffs is simply crazy, averaging 32.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, 8.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game, what do you think Doncic will bring us in the second round?
At the same time, there is also a meaningful picture, Doncic wearing a crown, sitting on the throne, standing next to the bowed James, and the picture also reads: The Next KING? (Next James?) ）
Whether Doncic will become the next James, and when it will become the next James, we still don't know, but at least, the current Doncic has begun to experience the pain of young Zhan.
In the first few years of entering the league, James single-core led the Cavaliers to a strong rise, and led the team to the Finals for the first time after 4 years, but was ruthlessly swept by the Spurs. Before entering the Finals, James's performance in the East was breathtaking, because the Cavaliers' lineup configuration at that time, to describe it as bad, was probably not enough image.
Some fans even joked that James could find 4 random people on the bus and be able to take them to the finals.
Now, Doncic is in his fourth year in the league, leading the team to the second round for the first time and breaking the spell. However, looking back at the playoffs in the past few years, in addition to having an injured and seriously declining "pseudo-star" Porzingis last season, Doncic has not had a good helper around him in recent years, not to mention that his level, even if it is just an All-Star entry, has become a luxury.
This G1 against the Suns, Doncic once again felt the pain of this loneliness and single-core team. Watching Booker, Paul and Ayton take turns performing, helping each other, and then looking at their teammates, if you tell Doncic that he can win the championship with this lineup, maybe he will laugh it off.
So, no matter how many games the Lone Ranger will be eliminated next, or miraculously defeat the opponent to advance, for Cuban, all he has to do is make a list of star signings as soon as possible, put the offseason reinforcement plan on the agenda in advance, and bring at least one star helper to Doncic in the offseason to ensure that he can bring more help to Doncic in the playoffs.
Today, Doncic is in the peak of the rise, if you can find the right star helper, to run in, the future lone ranger will undoubtedly become more terrifying.