Luka Doncic’s much-needed move propels the Mavericks to a stunning win over the Bulls

Through the first seven games of the season, slow starts have been the Dallas Mavericks’ kryptonite.

They never seemed to be able to come out of the gates with full force, and a lot of that fell to Luka Doncic. Mavs fans are used to Doncic being the king of the first quarter and setting the tone right away, but that hasn’t been the case this season.

Through the first seven games, Doncic averaged 8.1 points per game in the first quarter, but his field goal percentage was down significantly. He shot just 35.4 percent from the field and 21.1 percent from downtown in those seven games, but he made a big change on Wednesday night against the Chicago Bulls.

Instead of calling his own number and trying to force early shots, Doncic left it to Kyrie Irving to start this game, which did wonders for the team’s offense. Irving finished the first quarter with 15 points while shooting 6-7 from the field, and his defense and aggressiveness set the tone in this game.

Irving was immediately involved in this game, and Doncic getting Irving involved early in this game helped lay the foundation for a great game for both. By handing off to Irving early, Doncic was able to get his offense in and get his passing game going. Doncic finished the game with eight points and five assists while shooting 2-2 from downtown, and the lob game finally got rolling for Dallas.

Doncic didn’t settle for the same long twos as he did in the first two games, and taking over the game alongside Irving is something the Mavs should utilize more often. It’s not always just Doncic taking over the game in the first quarter, and Dallas brought in Irving to take some of the load off his shoulders.

Doncic shouldn’t feel like he has to take over early every game to win, and the win over the Bulls was proof of that. Dallas also got Klay Thompson involved early in this game, and that’s something they’ve needed to do for a while. Thompson’s limited offensive role early in games definitely hurt Dallas, and his five points on five shots in the first quarter was a good step in the right direction to ensure Dallas included him immediately and consistently.

The dominant start from Doncic and Irving helped the Mavs to a 119-99 victory over the Bulls, improving to 2-2 at home and 5-3 on the year, and their first quarter performance helped create the perfect plan to do so To lay you have to cope with the beginning of the game.

Doncic is at his best when he lets the game come to him and reacts to what the defense throws at him, and that’s how he had this dominant game. He played at his pace and took control of the game with his style of play, and Chicago had no answers for him.

When he and Irving are playing at an elite level offensively, they are extremely difficult to stop. Irving hit to the rim whenever he wanted, and he remains unstoppable when shooting threes after a jab step.

Doncic finished the night with 27 points, seven rebounds and 13 assists while shooting 8-for-19 from the field, marking the first time all season that he took fewer than 20 shots in a game. Irving finished the night with 17 points, six rebounds and three steals, and although he cooled off after the first quarter, he was a big reason Dallas was able to pull out the victory.

This was the highest-scoring first quarter we’ve ever seen from Irving in his Mavs’ tenure, as he finished the first quarter with 15 points, and Dallas needs more starts like this from him moving forward. He can take over the game at any time, and while that usually happens in the second half, his early takeover against the Bulls was a big change for the better.