The Luka Magic Show is indeed the greatest in the NBA today. And the more alarming thing about it: it seems that it’s bound to become even greater as the 2022-2023 season progresses.
A One Man Show
Luka Doncic is now the face of the Dallas Mavericks franchise and is certainly on his way to becoming the best Maverick since Dirk Nowitzki. And for good reason: he’s doing it all for the team.
Aside from averaging a league-leading 34.2 points in the first 34 games of the 2022-2023 campaign, the fifth-year veteran is also averaging 8.9 assists, 8.7 rebounds, and 51.1% field goal shooting in 36.9 minutes per game.
No wonder his standings in the MVP race rose from being tied for the seventh spot to third place just behind current leader Nikola Jokic and Jayson Tatum. And yes, Doncic’s numbers are one of the reasons why Dallas is on a seven game winning run and sit in fourth place in the Western Conference with a 22-16 record.
Triple-Doubles and More
Doncic’s game log looks like a video game at the moment. In his last 6 games played he’s scored no less than 32 points, and has gone over 50 in half those contests.
Nothing was bigger than his performance during the Mavs’ victory against the New York Knicks on December 27th, 2022. Not only did Luka carry the Mavs and force overtime despite being down nine points with a minute to play in the fourth quarter. He finished the game with 60 points, 21 rebounds, ten assists, two steals, and a block in 47 minutes.
A 60-21-10 triple-double. Not even the great Wilt Chamberlain had that kind of a triple-double in his legendary career.
Doncic is already closing in on Larry Bird’s count of 59 triple-doubles for the ninth spot in the all-time triple-double list. He also now has four 50-point games in his career, and after Doncic’s 60-point performance in New York, San Antonio Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich joked “We’re holding Luka under 50. Quote.”
Doncic made Pop eat those words as he scored 51 points in the Mavs’ 126-125 win. He also had nine assists, six rebounds, four steals, and shot 62.1% from the field.
For the season so far, Doncic has already recorded eight triple-doubles (tied for most with Nikola Jokic). And the scarier part is: he’s doing everything and winning games with little help.
Once upon a time, a then rookie Luka Doncic said, “Here (in the NBA), it’s easier to score compared to Europe.”
And he wasn’t joking.
Luka Doncic averaged 21.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and six assists as a rookie. Since then, his numbers have been on the rise- proof that he’s indeed a generational player.
-Iggy Gonzales
Photo: Erik Drost. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.