The Dallas Mavericks went to great lengths to keep Kyrie Irving next to Luka Doncic for the long run. That’s a risky bet, granted that they failed to make the playoffs last season.

Doncic is facing some criticism for the first time in his career. People talk about him being fat and his constant complaints to referees, and the clock seems to be ticking on him.

That’s why former NBA player J.J. Redick believes he’s actually poised for a breakout, as he knows Luka’s competitive nature, and believes the Mavs have done an outstanding job to revamp their roster in the offseason.

J.J. Redick Predicts A Breakout Year For Luka Doncic

“He’s as competitive as they come and he wants to win,” Redick said in his podcast. “And what I think Dallas has done is they’ve built a roster around him and Kyrie that makes sense on paper and we’ll see how it plays out.”

“But the two of them together, figuring out how to play with each other in a limited span last year, getting a full training camp, Luka coming into camp in shape,” Redick added. “I think Luka’s poise, is as good as he’s been. I think Luka’s poised for an outstanding season, an outstanding season of winning basketball, which gets me excited.”

There has been a lot of chatter about how the Mavs could fare and how another losing season could force Luka away from the team, so this could be a make-or-break campaign in Dallas.