With three minutes remaining, the Dallas Mavericks trailed the Nets by five points, 115-110, on Friday. Then Luka Doncic happened.
Finishing with 49 points, Doncic knocked down four straight 3-pointers, each one more difficult than the last, capped by an impossible bank shot while he was nearly falling out of bounds that proved to be the game-winner.
LUKA MAGIC.
WHAT ELSE CAN YOU SAY.
4 straight threes… each getting progressively more difficult and more clutch… to reach 49 points and give Dallas the win.
Special stuff from a superstar. pic.twitter.com/4uCvy2Qdfe
— NBA (@NBA) October 28, 2023
In his on-court postgame interview, Doncic swore he meant to bank that last shot. You going to question him? I’m sure not. The man is a magician.
In addition to his 49 points, Doncic finished with 10 rebounds and seven assists. He made 16 of his 25 shots, including 9 of 14 from 3 and 8 of 10 from the free-throw line. He didn’t commit a single turnover.
It feels like the discourse is becoming increasingly skeptical of Luka in terms of the style he plays, which is James Harden-like in that he basically hijacks the offense, and the way he’s always whining to the officials. Let me be clear: Throw all that out the window.
Doncic is one of the few special players who can do and say anything he wants on the court, because he’s just that great. His sum of skill and strength might be unmatched anywhere in the world of basketball (only Nikola Jokic and LeBron James would even have an honest case). He does impossible stuff as a matter of routine. He did it again on Friday to lift the Mavericks to a 2-0 start on the season.