Doncic, who had dragged an otherwise unremarkable Mavericks team through the Western Conference, became the face of their failure. Dallas coach Jason Kidd was forced to come out and defend his maligned star, even though without Doncic, the Mavericks were a faded Kyrie Irving and a bunch of role players.

All-star forward Anthony Davis has already joined the Dallas Mavericks after being traded by the Los Angeles Lakers over the weekend. Davis is with the team in Philadelphia to support his new club against the 76ers though he won't make his official debut on the court for at least a few more days.