Luka Doncic joins exalted company in 2nd season with Dallas Mavericks

Luka Doncic has been on a tear recently for the Dallas Mavericks. He has been playing so well he has accomplished something only four others have been able to do in this league.

Dallas Mavericks second-year sensation Luka Doncic has been playing some incredible basketball recently. He is leading the team in scoring, rebounds, assists and steals. This is not bad for a player who is only 20.

This season Doncic has already played seven games where he has scored 30 or more points. He has also had 10 games where he has collected 10 or more rebounds. On top of that he has nine games where he has 10 or more assists.

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This means through the first 16 games Doncic is averaging 30.6 points, 10.1 rebounds, 9.8 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He has 12 double-doubles, with seven triple-doubles. These numbers alone are impressive.

However, it is what he has done in the last four games which has elevated him to another stratosphere this season. Doncic is the first Mavericks player to have four straight games with at least 30 points and 10 assists.

During this time the Mavericks have averaged 134.8 points per game. Their opponents have only averaged 107 points per game. This is an average winning margin of 27.8 points per game.

Admittedly three of the four teams are at the bottom of the standings — the San Antonio Spurs, Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers. The fourth team played was the Houston Rockets which actually brings us to the most impressive feat of these four games.

Only four players have had four consecutive games where they have scored more than 30 points and had 10 assists and three of them were on the court in Houston. Both Russell Westbrook and James Harden have accomplished this feat which tells you how impressive what Doncic has done.

The fourth player to achieve this incredible feat, none other than Michael Jordan. Any time you are associated with the arguably greatest player in the game, you know you have accomplished something special.

Added to this, Doncic is also the second-youngest player (20 years, 269 days) to score 30-plus points in four straight games. The youngest ever player to do this was Kevin Durant (20 years, 134 days). Again, not a bad name to be associated with.

On top of that, Doncic is also the only player since Oscar Robertson to average more than 30 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists through the first 16 games

It is not just the numbers, it is how he plays

However, it is not just the numbers which are impressive, it is the way Luka Doncic plays. While watching the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Rockets, there was a sense Doncic was thinking about the challenge of taking on another potential MVP candidate. Doncic stepped up well above anything James Harden was able to produce, in his own house to boot.

Harden shot 2-of-15 from deep; any other player in the league would have been pulled, but Harden seems to have total reign over that team. Doncic went 5-of-14 from deep, but was also more dangerous involving his teammates.

This is shown by his plus-21 impact in the box score during his 34 minutes of game time. Harden played 41 minutes and was minus-12 in that time.  Toward the end of the game the Rockets came back to within five points. They had the crowd behind them and surely the Mavericks would capitulate.

Doncic showed his leadership, putting both arms in the air after a missed free throw, and then took over the game. At the age of 20 Doncic showed the leadership usually associated with a player in their late 20s. It is no wonder he is being talked about as a potential MVP in just his second season.

One thing is for sure, this is not the last time Doncic’s name will be associated with the greats of the game. As he is only 20, he is only going to get better, who knows what he will accomplish in what will be a storied career. As we all know, the Dallas Mavericks have a future great in Luka Doncic.