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Unsolved singles make a great night, Doncic joins the European basketball pantheon

Sports Weekly All Media Reporter Ji Mengnian

On the dome of the Cologne Arena, Dirk Nowitzki’s German national team’s No. 14 shirt hangs high. As one of the greatest players in European basketball history, Dirk scored 43 points in a single game against Spain in the Euro 2001. Although scoring 43 points in a single game is not the historical record of the European Championships, in the past 20 years, Nuo Tianwang’s crazy performance in that year is still regarded as an insurmountable peak.

However, Euro 2022 seems destined to carry a lot of legend. In the previous clash between Greece and Ukraine, Antetokounmpo scored 41 points, which was actually very close to Nowitzki’s scoring record. In the confrontation between Slovenia and France, there is a historic moment. Doncic fouled Fournier with 2:16 left in the fourth quarter of the game. Luka, who walked to the free throw line, made two free throws and fixed his final score in the game at 47 points.

Doncic not only surpassed the peak called “Dirk”, but also left Nick Gallis’ 46 points in a single game behind. Although there was a 63-point miracle in a single game created by Belgian legend Terence in 1957 in front of Luka, considering that the overall level of the European Championships at that time was not the same as it is now, Doncic relied on the 47 points in this campaign. The performance is enough to be among the pantheon of European basketball.

Unsolved singles make a great night

Doncic’s outbreak was not without warning.

In the first three games of the group stage, Slovenia achieved a record of 2 wins and 1 loss. However, the team’s overall performance seems unsatisfactory, and Doncic’s competitive state doesn’t look that great. It was not until the clash with the German team that Luka showed his superstar style for the first time. Facing the hosts, he scored 36 points to lead Slovenia to a crucial victory.

However, after Slovenia’s match against Germany, there is still one question that worries the defending champions. That is, Doncic could not find a three-pointer at all in this European Championship. After the first four games, Luka made only 6 out of 30 shots from beyond the three-point line, and the efficiency of three-pointers and two-pointers contrasted significantly. Although Doncic is not good at 3-pointers, this kind of shooting rate is somewhat unconventional.

But from another point of view, since Doncic’s previous three-point shooting rate is so low, it actually means that he is about to rebound. Unfortunately for the French team, it became the backdrop for Doncic to feel warmer.

Doncic’s first campaign score in this campaign was against the French insider Fall. Luka and his teammates formed a switch after the pick-and-roll, and the Slovenian core lost the focus of the French interior with a clever rhythm change. Doncic, who got the shooting space, made a three-pointer with his hand and started the night that belonged to him. Not long after, Doncic again formed a dislocation with his teammates in the pick-and-roll, this time in front of Luka became Poirier. The insider who once played for the Celtics was not much faster than Fall in terms of foot movement speed, and was still easily scored by Doncic.

To Poirier’s surprise, this goal was just the beginning of a nightmare. Next, Doncic began to continuously name the French insider, scoring in a variety of different ways. In this situation, one can’t help but think of the past few years when the Mavericks faced off against the Clippers in the playoffs, and Doncic named Zubac again and again to score.

By the end of the half, Doncic had already scored 27 points. But this is not the end. There were originally many people in the French team who could rotate. After seeing Doncic’s crazy performance in the first half, Collet could only arrange for Gobert to support more time in the second half. Compared with Fall and Poirier, Gobert’s mobility and athleticism are better, so he is relatively less passive when limiting Doncic.

However, Doncic can not only call up, but also down. The biggest problem with the French team in this tournament is that they have insufficient height in the backcourt and flanks except for the inside line. Therefore, when Doncic meets the French defenders and flanks, scoring is still easy and enjoyable. Until the last few minutes of the game, Collet had no choice but to arrange for the players to double-team Doncic. The Slovenian offense did suffer for a while. But in the last few rounds of the game, when France focused its defense on Doncic, it gave other players more opportunities. Conchar’s scoring at the last minute is the best example of the French defense’s ignorance of one thing and another.

After the whole game, Doncic scored 47 points and hit an astonishing 65.2. Previously, his three-point shooting was not good, but he threw 6 of 11 performances in this game. In a way, this is an unconventional Doncic game. Although he still had 5 assists, more rounds ended in singles. But from another level, this is also the most terrifying place in Luka. In addition to being an outstanding controller, he is also a cold-blooded scorer, and the unsolved singles forged his great nights.

Young is a record harvester

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After the game, even the French players praised Doncic’s great performance in this game. Fournier said in an interview: “Luka is a genius that can only be born in a generation. When you give him that shot, he becomes confident and then it is difficult to stop.”

After Parker retired, Fournier gradually became the core of the French men’s basketball team. But even so, Doncic’s performance on this night still seems to make Fournier feel a little incredible.

You know, in the history of the European Championships, there are very few players who can score 40+ in a single game. After entering the 21st century, only Dirk Nowitzki (2001, 43 points), Gasol (2015, 40 points) and Antetokounmpo (2022, 41 points) have a single-game 40+ experience. Doncic scored 47 points in this game against France, not only leaving these three behind, but also surpassing the Greek star Galis. In the 1983 European Championship, Gallis scored 46 points in a single game against Sweden.

Before Galis, Belgian player Terence had a miracle of 63 points in a single game. But it has to be said that the overall level of competition in the European Championships in 1957 was not the same as it was later. Belgium and Albania met in qualifying, where Terence scored 63 points. It is worth mentioning that the Albanian men’s basketball team had 0 wins and 10 losses in that tournament, and finally ranked at the bottom, with an average net loss of 30.8 points per game.

From this point of view, Doncic scored 47 points in a single game against France, which is full of gold. However, this is not the first time Doncic has made history. In the Tokyo Olympics last year, Doncic also scored 48 points in the confrontation with Argentina, which also reaped many records.

First of all, 48 points in a single game is the highest score by an NBA player in an Olympic arena. Secondly, 48 points in a single game is also the highest score for a player in his Olympic men’s basketball debut. Also, Doncic became the youngest Mr. 40+ in Olympic history by virtue of his performance in that game. And in the first half of that game, he scored 31 points, setting the Olympic men’s basketball halftime record for the most points.

More importantly, a single game of 48 points is already the second-highest single-game score in Olympic men’s basketball history, second only to the 55-point record set by legendary star Oscar Schmidt at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Later, in an interview, Schmidt talked about Doncic, and he did not hesitate to love this talented teenager. “I am a huge fan of Luka. I not only like his skills, but also his enthusiasm for fighting for the country. If Luka breaks my record one day, I will congratulate him!”

Semifinals or witness ace vs ace

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In addition to scoring 47 points in a single game and creating a personal miracle, the greatest significance of this game for Doncic is that Slovenia finally entered the top 16 as the top of Group B.

Although Slovenia is the defending champion, and its overall strength is indeed excellent, it is still not easy to enter the knockout stage as the top of the group. Next, they will face the fourth-placed Belgium in Group A in the first knockout round. Belgium has had the experience of defeating Spain before, but Slovenia still has a clear advantage in strength, and it should not be a problem to enter the quarterfinals.

Even the quarter-finals are not a challenge for Slovenia, and many people have already set their sights on the semi-finals. If nothing else, Serbia will be there waiting for Slovenia. Doncic and Jokic, two talented European players, are likely to join forces in the semifinals. The two teams had a warm-up before the European Championship, and that match made the fans hooked. Once the two teams meet again in the European Championship semi-finals, it will be a matchup like Mars hitting the earth.

However, compared to Serbia, Slovenia does not seem to have demonstrated its dominance in this European Championship. Doncic’s 47 points in a single game is indeed like a god, but it also exposed some problems in Slovenia. The reason why they were able to reach the top of the European Championship 5 years ago was not due to Dragic’s own efforts, but the relatively balanced performance of the entire team. This time, if Slovenia wants to go further, it cannot put the burden on Doncic alone, and it needs other players to stand up and help him share it.

Now that the group stage is over, Slovenia can get valuable adjustment time. In addition to restoring physical fitness, the coaching staff needs to analyze the problems in the group stage. It is difficult for Doncic to lead Slovenia to the end alone, and all arrows are the key to the victory of the defending champion.

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