Luka Doncic fumbles for the first time in his playoff career in the Game 3 loss

Things are starting to turn sour for the Mavericks now, as they just lost their third straight NBA Finals game against the Celtics, this time at their American airport. Boston came back strong in the fourth quarter to beat Dallas 99-106, and is now on track to win its first title in 15 years.

It also wasn't a night for Luka Doncic, who was knocked out for the first time in his playoff career. The Slovenian tried his best to get his feet right beyond the arc as Jaylen Brown ran between his legs and made contact, sending both players down.

With 4:12 left in the march, the Mavs guard was called, who was left sitting on the ground in disbelief. This meant that Luka made his sixth foul of the game, his fourth in the last quarter, and was ejected even though coach Jason Kidd did not succeed in his call.

Brian Windhorst fires off Luka Doncic 😳

(🎥 @BoltGangBaby ) pic.twitter.com/Tp7nY2R3Vo

– NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 13, 2024

“Yes, we had a good chance. We were close. I didn't get it,” Doncic said after the game, frustrated at how the Celtics came back in the final minutes. “I wish I was there.”

Last night's game marked the 157th time a team has lost the first three games of a best-of-seven NBA series, with none of them able to turn their fortunes around to win a matchup. The last time a club forced a Game 7 in the NBA Finals, was in 1951 against the New York Knicks.

Even though Luke dropped 27 points (just 1-of-7 from deep), his frustration was palpable when he lost for just the third time in his six NBA campaigns. However, he had never been called four fouls in one quarter.

“I mean I don't know. We couldn't play physically. I don't know. I don't want to say anything,” said the star in disbelief. “You know, six fouls in the NBA Finals, I'm actually like this. Come on man. It's better than that.”

After the game, Jason Kidd called Doncic's last call “cheating” and explained again why he had to challenge the game.

Looking at the replay, Luka's sixth foul came 26 seconds after the fifth, and it appeared that Brown may have connected the Slovenian before going down. After the game, Dallas coach Jason Kidd said the game was unusual. “Yeah, it looks… it looks deceiving,” he said.

The Mavs strategist felt he had no choice but to challenge the game, as it was his only hope of keeping Doncic in the game. “I was stuck. “I had to challenge,” Kidd explained. “We had to challenge because it was a close call. But the referee called it wrong. You have to move on, move forward.”

We now look forward to Game 4 on Friday night, as it will be Dallas' last chance to win and take the series back to Boston. “It's not over until it's over. We have to believe,” the guard confirmed.

“As I always say, it starts until the fourth,” added Doncic, who admitted that he felt offensive support from his teammates in Game 3. “We'll stay together. We lose together, we win together. So we have to live together.”