ATLANTA – Perhaps no one can perfectly describe the absolute incredible show-stopping performance Luka Doncic put on the
State Farm Arena court Friday night better than teammate Josh Green.
“It was like a game of (NBA) 2K,” Green said. “Whoever was controlling it did a good job, I’ll tell you that. I’ve never even seen it in 2K.”
What a near speechless Green was referring to was the eye-popping 73 points Doncic tallied in leading the Mavericks to a 148-143 triumph over the Atlanta Hawks. Doncic’s performance had the whole NBA world talking, and even had Hawks fans cheering him on as he approached the NBA record books.
The outstanding performance by Doncic ties Wilt Chamberlain and David Thompson for the fourth-most points ever scored in an NBA game. In fact, besides Doncic the only other players to score at least 70 points in a game are Chamberlain (100 and five other occasions), Kobe Bryant (81), Thompson (73), Elgin Baylor (71), David Robinson (71), Donovan Mitchell (71), Damian Lillard (71), Devin Booker (70) and Joel Embiid (70).
By halftime, Doncic had already 41 points as he kept firing in three-pointers or slicing through the Hawks’ porous defense for forays to the basket. It was as if the Hawks – no matter how hard they tried – had no chance of slowing down the five-time All-Star.
“In the first quarter, because I was talking to the coaching staff, I thought we needed him to go for 40 or 50 tonight to give us a chance to win,” coach Jason Kidd said. “Just with the injuries and the offense that’s missing, he’s got to carry the load and he understood that.
“But he gave us that in the first half. So, at that point I thought maybe we should be greedy and we should ask for another 40 to make sure that we can find a way to win.”
Kidd went so far as to describe Doncic’s performance to a Picasso.
“This is one of the best paintings,” Kidd said. “This one is high-priced just the way that he painted the game tonight.
“We needed every point, every minute and he delivered.”
Doncic played 45 minutes and was an amazing 25-of-33 from the field, 8-of-13 from three-point land and 15-of-16 from the free throw line. He was
throwing darts all night and the Hawks couldn’t get out of the way.
“He was hot,” said Hawks point guard Trae Young, who scored 30 points. “We were trying everything. We were trying to trap him.”
But nothing worked for the Hawks, who dropped their fourth straight game and fell to 18-27.
“Because of the type of player he is, you are forced to give things up,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “Then it’s just a question of how well you can execute to make those things harder. There are so many things if you try to commit to him. He’s going to find people.”
Doncic found people. More precisely, he found the bottom of the basket – again and again and again. And it constantly frustrated the Hawks.
When he’s rolling like he was Friday, Doncic said he’s “just excited. It’s not me going off. Just sometimes I just can’t believe it.
“They were doubling me the whole time. Sometimes you just got to make the right play and have trust in your teammates.”
With the crowd getting loud and roaring it’s approval, Doncic scored his 70th point on a three-point play that put the Mavs ahead, 137-127, with a little over three minutes remaining in the game. The six-year veteran added another three-point play to register his 73rd point, which lifted the Mavs out front, 143-136, with 58 seconds to go.
Young narrowed the Hawks’ deficit to 146-143 with a three-pointer with just 8.9 seconds left. Tim Hardaway Jr. (13 points) closed the scoring with a pair of free throws.
Doncic’s final point total surpassed his own franchise record of 60 points on Dec. 27, 2022 against the New York Knicks. And the 41 points he tallied in the first half are the most for a Mavs player, eclipsing the 34 points Dirk Nowitzki notched in the second half of a Nov. 3, 2009 game against Utah.
“In a game you’re not looking at and seeing the player’s stats,” said Green, who scored 21 points on 8-of-12 shots. “But one time I looked up and it was
like, he’s got 40! And then I looked at it again going into the fourth quarter and it was like 60. It’s ridiculous.”
So ridiculous that even Kidd said of Doncic: “He is the game plan. His ability to make shots, create shots, find open guys, he did that at a high level tonight. Early on when he was going, you could see that he wasn’t falling.
“He was on his feet, so I thought his foundation and his base was really good tonight. He had his legs. And he just took what the defense gave him.”
Doncic had 18 points in the first quarter and added 23 more in the second quarter, which ended tied at 66-66. After the third qua
rter, Doncic had 57 points and his epic night was in full force.
This is the most points scored in an NBA game this season, shattering the 70 points Embiid tallied against the San Antonio Spurs this past Monday.
“I’ve said this before, we can’t take (Doncic) for granted,” Kidd said. “Every night is special. He always does something. Sometimes we are a little bit tough on him because of the wins and losses, but what he does on the court is different than anybody else. So, he displayed that again.
“I think we’ve seen this before, but not at 70. Sometimes we all can just watch — coaches, players, teammates — so just understanding we’re still trying to run plays for other guys and use him as a screener to get other guys shots. I thought he did a great job of doing that tonight.”
Doncic said he got a lot of love from his teammates throughout the game. And they doused him with water when he entered the locker room after the game.
“They were amazing the whole game, especially in the locker room,” Doncic said. “So, that means a lot to me.”
The Hawks’ fans got in on the act, too. And maybe they were recalling the day of the 2018 NBA Draft when the Hawks actually drafted Doncic with the third overall pick, then traded him to the Mavs for Young, who the Mavs drafted with the fifth overall pick.
“I could have been here, but I think it benefits for both sides,” Doncic said. “I actually saw a fan wearing an Atlanta jersey with 77, so I was glad to see that.
“But there’s always going to be trades and conversations when you come back to one place that could have had you. That always have more of a special thing to it, so maybe it was more special.”
The Mavs, now 25-20, were coming off three losses. And with Kyrie Irving sitting this one out with a right thumb sprain, a lot of the scoring burden fell on the shoulders of Doncic.
“This was a different Luka,” Kidd said. “When you see him smiling, he’s at peace and he’s happy and he’s going to play at a different level.
“He does get emotional on the court (and) he is shy off the court. I think he was shy tonight and he played at a very high level with his shyness.”
When it was all said and done and history came calling, Doncic put everything in its proper perspective. Especially knowing that the Mavs have a home game Saturday night against Sacramento.
Being lined up right alongside some of the game’s greatest players can wait.
“I feel special to be in that conversation with those names,” Doncic said. “But I’ve got to recover, man.”
X: @DwainPrice
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