The NBA play-in race is making the Mavericks better Share this story Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports “You play 72 games to get into the playoffs, then maybe you lose two in a row and you’re out of the playoffs. So I don’t see the point of that.” — Luka Dončić on the NBA play-in tournament Luka Dončić hates the idea of the play-in tournament. Mark Cuban thinks the play-in tournament was an enormous mistake. Jalen Brunson described play-in as “Meh” on the recent Lowe Post podcast. Most Mavericks fans didn’t like it when the team was struggling and hovering around the eight spot in the Western Conference. When the Lakers, Mavericks rivals in the play-in race, started their free-fall in the standings Lebron James voiced his displeasure with the play-in tournament.