As anybody with an appreciation of NBA history knows, when you pass Larry Bird at anything, you’ve done something special.
Luka Dončić was beyond special on Wednesday night.
Looking fresher than they have since perhaps opening night after three days off, the Mavericks steamrolled the Utah Jazz 147-97 at American Airlines Center and celebrated a massive night for Dončić.
The superstar point guard had a triple-double – before halftime.
It would end up being his 60th triple-double, breaking the tie with Bird for sole possession of ninth place on the NBA’s all-time triple-double list.
Dončić had 40 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds. He had 29-10-10 at halftime.
It was, to say the least, a dominating performance, and even included a technical foul, something Luka has been good about not getting recently. He was on the receiving end of a finger-pointing Kris Dunn, who also received a technical.
But nothing could tarnish this night. Luka hit a bucket with a minute to go in the third quarter to reach the 40-point mark. He would not be needed in the fourth quarter as the Mavericks were up 107-73 at that point.
So, did Luka know he was on the cusp of a first-half triple double when he was an assist away from it in the final minutes of the second quarter?
“Yeah, of course. I was going for that. I got to admit,” he said.
And while he wasn’t keeping track of his place on the triple-double list, he had a certain amount of respect for what he accomplished in surpassing Bird.
“It’s amazing,” he said. “I don’t know what to say, honestly. But we all know who Larry Bird was, so it’s pretty special.”
It was an interesting night from the start, with Luka donning a headband which, he said, was to keep his getting-longer hair out of his eyes. Whatever it was, it worked.
“Everybody said it (the triple-double) was the headband,” Luka said. “I say it’s me.”
He said it helped that the Mavericks had three days off since losing to Oklahoma City on Saturday. Luka said he felt “amazing.”
And he didn’t even mind that much that Dunn got in his face late in the third quarter.
“I didn’t do nothing,” he said. “A little bit of pushing there, but he put a finger in my face and I just left. I don’t know how I got a tech. But those things just happen in a game. I didn’t do nothing.”
Luka’s remarkable game was much-needed as the Mavericks had lost two in a row and five of their previous seven games.
They improved to 12-8 on the season, while the Jazz fell to 7-14. Yes, the Jazz were missing Lauri Markkanen and Jordan Clarkson, two of their best scorers. But it didn’t camouflage the fact that this was a wipeout.
“I think he’s had a lot of fun this season,” coach Jason Kidd said of Dončić. “He’s competing, he’s having fun and the energy was extremely high. And I think the headband works.”
On this night, definitely.
But it was more than just a one-man show.
“Everybody played the right way and it was a complete game,” Kidd said. “There are some good combinations that we’re trying to get on (the court) on a consistent basis.”
Luka indeed had some help. Actually, lots of it. Kyrie Irving came back from missing Saturday’s loss to Oklahoma City with foot soreness to score 26 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. returned from back issues to score 17 points.
Hardaway couldn’t help razzing Luka, saying: “I thought he was going to go 50-20-20. He had an opportunity to go 30-10-10 (in the first half) but he missed the free throw. It happens.”
Yeah, the nerve of that guy.
At any rate, the Mavericks were sizzling from long range all night and the Jazz were powerless to slow them down.
Before the game, coach Jason Kidd said he wanted to see a fresh team and that’s exactly what he got. It was evident in the way the Mavericks rebounded, winning the boards 47-43 against a team that is one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the league.
“Got to box out,” Kidd said. “They’re coming. They send three every time, if not four. The one that’s shooting is the one that’s not crashing.
“We have to be able to execute. And on the defensive end, we got to be able to know the rotations and we have to be able to finish the play with a rebound.”
The Mavericks did that and more, cruising to a monster triumph to finish this home stand 2-2.
X: @ESefko
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