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NBA Rookie Rankings: What’s Luka Doncic’s biggest weakness?

By Rucker Haringey

DALLAS, TEXAS - JANUARY 07: Luka Doncic #77 of the Dallas Mavericks during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center on January 07, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
DALLAS, TEXAS - JANUARY 07: Luka Doncic #77 of the Dallas Mavericks during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center on January 07, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – JANUARY 05: Luka Doncic #77 of the Dallas Mavericks reacts in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center on January 5, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 76ers defeated the Mavericks 106-100. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – JANUARY 05: Luka Doncic #77 of the Dallas Mavericks reacts in the fourth quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center on January 5, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 76ers defeated the Mavericks 106-100. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

1. Luka DoncicL Conditioning

Doncic retains his spot at the top of this week’s Rookie Rankings by an ever-increasing margin. That doesn’t mean he’s a perfect player. When you look at the Slovenian out on the court it’s clear he isn’t in elite physical condition. That fact should terrify the rest of the NBA.

In fairness to Doncic, he was deliberately left out of the Mavericks’ summer conditioning program to allow his body to recover from a grueling season in Europe. That was absolutely the right decision by Dallas’ front office. If they would have thrown him into the mix immediately it would have put their prized asset at serious risk of injury.

Next offseason should be a completely different issue. Unless the Mavericks make an extended playoff run, he should have ample time to rest before joining his teammates in the full range of their offseason activities. At the very least, it should allow him to play even more intense minutes for Rick Carlisle. At the most, it could give Doncic an extra boost in athleticism that will help him drastically on both ends of the floor.

dark. Next. NBA Rookie Rankings: 5 guys with the most long-term potential

We’re not body shaming Doncic here, but he can get into better shape once a full NBA weight program gets a hold of him. It’s scary to think how much that might help the runaway favorite for Rookie of the Year.

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