WASHINGTON — Luka Dončić registered his first triple-double of the season, and the Dallas Mavericks ran away for a relatively easy 137-101
triumph over the Washington Wizards on Thursday night at Capital One Arena.
It was the sixth win in a row for the Mavs, and also their 10th victory in their last 11 games as they improved to 15-8 on the season. The Wizards, meanwhile, dropped their 16th straight game and fell to 2-18.
Dončić finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in collecting his first triple-double since he had 39 points,12 rebounds and 10 assists during a 130-104 win at Charlotte on April 9, which was the Mavs’ next-to-last game of the 2023-24 season.
“When you talk about Luka’s ability to have the handprint that he can have on the game in a sense of passing, rebounding and scoring, he does all three things at a very high level,” coach Jason Kidd said. “Right now he’s shooting the ball extremely well, and when he sees the double-team he understands as the quarterback who’s open and how can he get the ball to them, and he’s done that at a high level.”
Dončić was firing darts all night – at the rim and to his teammates for assists. During one powerful sequence late in the third quarter, Dončić tossed a cross-court pass to Quentin Grimes for a three-pointer.
A short time later he launched a bullet down the lane, which Daniel Gafford collected and finished with a dunk. Another Dončić-to-Gafford pass ended with a dunk to put the Mavs up, 99-75.
In producing his 78th career triple-double, Dončić moved into a tie for seventh place on the NBA’s all-time triple-double list with Wilt Chamberlain and James Harden. Afterwards, Dončić said: “Just to be up there with those great names, it’s unbelievable for me.”
Dončić was 7-of-17 from the field, and also manufactured a pair of steals as the Wizards had all sorts of problems trying to slow him down.
“For us, we need him to come back and help us rebound, and he’s doing those three things at a high level and he’s leading his team, so we need that,” Kidd said. “Now, do we need a triple-double every night? We’ll take it.
“That means we’re in a good spot to win a game. But his ability, his gravity to be able to get a triple-double is something that he does at a high level.”
Kyrie Irving also was doing things at a high level. After scoring just 10 points on 3-of-14 shooting during Tuesday’s win over Memphis, Irving bounced back with a
game-high 25 points on 10-of-16 shooting in just 25 minutes.
Irving was particularly splendid at the tail end of the second quarter when he scored 13 of the Mavs’ final 15 points, helping them go to the dressing room nursing a 68-50 lead.
Other than Dončić and Irving, the Mavs got 16 points and seven rebounds from Gafford, 14 points from Grimes, 13 points from Jaden Hardy, 12 points from Spencer Dinwiddie, 11 points from Klay Thompson, and 10 points from P. J. Washington.
The eight players scoring 10 or more points for the Mavs were one shy of the franchise record. Also, the Mavs have had at least six players score 10 or m
ore points in nine of their last 10 games.
“We’ve been playing like that, I think, for a month now – where we’re getting six or seven guys in double figures,” Kidd said. “Everyone is touching the ball, we’re making the game easy on the offensive end.
“And on the defensive end we’re rebounding and contesting as many shots as we can, and I thought that we did a really good job on both ends.”
Marvin Bagley III (16 points, eight rebounds), Malcolm Brogdon (16 points, five boards), and Carlton Carrington (15 points) paced the Wizards, who also got 11 points apiece from Alexandre Sarr and Jordan Poole.
The Mavs will complete this brief two-game road trip Saturday in Toronto before returning home to prepare for their 2024 Cup Nights quarterfinals’ game, which will be Tuesday night at 8:30 at Oklahoma City.
On having so many players chipping in and contributing to the scoring load, Dončić said: “I think offense and defense, we’re just sharing the ball and I’m having fun playing with these guys. It’s just fun out there. Everybody is playing relaxed.”
The Mavs were so relaxed that they shot 53.9 percent from the field and a sizzling 52.6 percent from three-point la
nd (20-of-38). They also dominated the Wizards on the boards (58-38) and just pretty much did whatever they wanted to do for the majority of the night.
“First of all, I think we have a lot of depth,” Dončić said. “Anybody that can step on the court can produce a lot of things. Everybody knows their role.
“Chemistry, I think, is one of the most important things on teams like this, and we have it. Everybody gets along, and it’s just fun to play with these guys on the court.”
The Mavs jumped out to an 18-6 lead midway through the first quarter after they reeled off 15 unanswered points. Highlights during that run includes three-pointers by Washington, Irving and Dončić, and a driving layup by Grimes.
Dallas converted 7-of-12 shots from three-point range in the first quarter, and their long distance marksmanship opened up the floor and provided more space for them to do some heavy damage in the lane.
When Irving drained a three-pointer less than three minutes into the third quarter, the Mavs were up, 77-52. The lead eventually swelled to as much as 42 points (132-90) following a three-pointer by Markieff Morris with 4:26 left in the game.
“Offensively, the ball is moving,” Kidd said. “Just the rhythm of the game (is impressive).
“The energy is at a high right now. Guys are settling into their roles and playing their roles at a high level.”
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