Luka Doncic is looking to carry the Dallas Mavericks all the way to the NBA finals.
In a pivotal Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals, Doncic had a triple-double— 31 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists—to lead the Mavericks to a 104-92 victory over the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Mavericks lead the series 3-2 and can wrap up the series Saturday night in Dallas.
“In the playoffs, it’s first to four,” said Doncic, who is playing through a sprained right knee. “You have to win four before they do so you have to go game-by-game. We play as a team. We win as a team. We lose as a team.”
The Mavericks often look to Doncicm five-time NBA All-Star, when they need a big play or pivotal run. This often frustrates their opponents, who sometimes become overly physical with Doncic and try to get him into foul trouble.
Dallas coach Jason Kidd is impressed with Doncic’s demeanor even when some of the calls do not go his way.
“He’s human. He’s not a robot,“ Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. “Sometimes we just pencil in that he’s going to put in 30, 10, and 10. You know the playoffs are hard mentally and physically. Before the game, understand you are not going to get any calls on the road. You got to understand you got to play through it.”
Despite his prowess on the court, Doncic has yet to win an NBA Most Valuable Player award.
This past season, he finished third to Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic and Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Doncic earned 566 total points and four first-place votes after averaging a league-high 33.9 points, 9.8 assists, and 9.2 rebounds in 70 games. He shot 48.7 percent from the floor, 38.2 percent from beyond the arc, and 78. percent from the free-throw line.
At age 24, Doncic still has plenty of time to add accolades to his trophy case.
He was originally selected by Atlanta with the third overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, before being traded to Dallas in exchange for the draft rights to the fifth overall pick Trae Young, and a future first-round selection.
The deal paid almost immediate dividends for Dallas as Doncic averaged 21.2 points, 6 assists, and 7.8 rebounds per game as a rookie. He also had seven triple-doubles and was named Rookie of the Year, receiving 98 of 100 first-place votes.
There was no sophomore slump the following year as Doncic was even more dominant, averaging 28.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 8.8 assists per game. He finished fourth in the voting for the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award, becoming the second-youngest NBA player after Lebron James to finish in the top five. He also led the Mavericks to the playoffs where they lost in the first round to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Doncic has continued to produce and he holds career averages of 28.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 7.3 assists over 400 games.
Now, the focus is winning the Maverick’s second NBA championship after capturing the title in 2011.
“This team is special,” Doncic said. “We’ve only been together for five months, and I’m having a lot of fun with this team.
