It only took one game playing with Klay Thompson for Luka Doncic to decide his new teammate was automatic from three-point range.
In the fourth quarter of the Dallas Mavericks’ season-opening win over the San Antonio Spurs, Doncic found Thompson wide-open behind the three-point arc and didn’t bother to watch the shot go in. Or even go up.
We’ve seen shooters like Steph Curry turn around after putting up a three when they’re sure it’s going in. But Doncic was so sure that Thompson was going to can his jumper that he turned around and headed up court before Thompson even took a dribble before the shot.
It’s hard to argue that Doncic’s confidence was irrational after Thompson went 6-for-10 from deep in his first game with the Mavericks. Four of those threes were assists by Doncic, who delivered five of his eight assists to his new sharpshooting teammate.
In total, seven of Doncic’s assists were on three-pointers, including a ridiculous no-look pass to P.J. Washington for a third-quarter triple.
It was fitting that Thompson’s big night — which set a team record for three-pointers in a Mavs debut — happened in a game called by TNT’s Reggie Miller. Thompson switched to Miller’s No. 31 for this season in Dallas, abandoning the No. 11 he wore with the Golden State Warriors. After Thursday night’s game, Thompson is only 73 threes behind Miller for fifth on the all-time list.
One game is a small sample, but Doncic and Thompson seem to feel great about their new partnership. Thompson’s on track to hit a lot of threes this year, and Doncic might even watch most of them go in.
