TORONTO — The Raptors tried everything they could to fluster Luka Doncic on Saturday night — including some hijinks before the game even started.
After warming up at the same time, Doncic walked off the court to sign autographs. His close friend and fellow Slovenian, Raptors guard Goran Dragic, followed behind.
And tried to tug Doncic’s shorts down as he interacted with fans.
Doncic didn’t flinch then — or when he willed the Mavericks to a 103-95 win.
The 22-year-old All-Star tallied 27 points, nine rebounds and 12 assists in 39 minutes, one board shy of a triple-double.
Despite the Mavericks’ offensive struggles in the first half, the Mavericks responded to a blowout loss Thursday in Atlanta with their first victory under head coach Jason Kidd.
There were several key storylines that emerged — and continued — in the Mavericks’ second regular-season outing.
Tim Hardaway Jr. dominated in the second half and finished with 25 points, shooting 7 of 11 from 3. Kristaps Porzingis added 18 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks while continuing to show better mobility on defense. The Mavericks’ spacing remained disjointed and congested during the first half before they hit a groove in the third quarter.
But most important to Doncic — aside from helping the Mavericks erase what was once a 14-point deficit — was the chance to see Dragic, whom he’s known since he was 5.
The presence of the two, plus Mavericks assistant Igor Kokoskov, marked a reunion of sorts of Slovenia’s 2017 EuroBasket team, which won an unprecedented championship.
Doncic and Dragic didn’t draw a as massive of a pro-Slovenia crowd in Toronto, as had become custom during Doncic’s first three seasons of matchups against Dragic, but Doncic still signed a Slovenian flag before the game and received a loud pre-game ovation.
Then he showed the skill, determination and craftiness that’s made him an international NBA draw at 22 years old.
The Raptors didn’t experiment with as much junk defense against Doncic — specifically box-and-1 and triangle-2 — as they did last January in a blowout win over the Mavericks. Coach Nick Nurse hasn’t had time to implement more advanced schemes early in the season with the Raptors fielding a young team.
But the Mavericks’ own discombobulations on offense kept Doncic off balance at times.
Throughout the first half, Doncic would drive into the paint and confront not just Raptors defenders but a couple of frontcourt teammates, too.
In the first quarter, he attempted five shots, the same number as Porzingis and one fewer than Dorian Finney-Smith. He committed four of the Mavericks’ seven first-half turnovers, and his body language often signaled frustration.
During one timeout in the first quarter, Doncic stood off to the side, talking with assistants Kokoskov and Peter Patton, rather than joining the huddle on the bench around Kidd.
The Mavericks trailed 16-2 after six minutes and again by 11 points with five minutes left in the first half.
But the rhythm changed in the third quarter.
Doncic played all 12 minutes — swishing his first two 3-pointers — and the Mavericks opened their first lead since the early minutes of Thursday night’s loss to the Hawks. Dallas started running more high ball screens for Doncic and pushing the pace in transition.
That also led to easier passes behind the arc to Hardaway, who nailed his three 3-point attempts in the period and scored 22 points after halftime.
It helped, too, that the Raptors’ OG Anunoby battled foul trouble throughout the last three quarters. Anunoby scored 20 points (8 of 10 from the field) of his 23 points in the first half.
The Mavericks had beaten Toronto once before tipoff.
They arrived in Toronto around 2 p.m. local time Friday, hours before the Raptors tipped off in Boston, their first game of this back to back.
Toronto appeared to lose some energy after halftime — just as Doncic was gaining his.
