While playing like an MVP, Doncic experienced a January to remember

Luka Doncic experienced one of those Januarys to remember. It was an iconic month that likely will keep him right smack in the middle of the race to win this year’s Most Valuable Player award.

In January, Doncic averaged a whopping 37.1 points and 10.4 assists. This comes after he also averaged at least 35 points and 10 assists in the month of December.

In fact, Nate “Tiny” Archibald (January and February of 1973) and Doncic are the only players to average at least 35 points and 10 assists in consecutive months in NBA history with a minimum of 10 games played in each month.

Overall, Doncic scored or assisted on 61.5 points per game in January, punctuated by a historic 73-point game against the Atlanta Hawks on Jan. 26. That tied Wilt Chamberlain and David Thompson for the fourth-most points ever scored in an NBA game and represents the most points anyone has scored since Kobe Bryant tallied 81 points against Toronto in 2006.

In the history of the NBA, there have only been three months where a player scored or assisted on at least 60 points per game in any month during the season, and Doncic owns two of those instances. This past December, Doncic scored or assisted on 63.9 points per game for the Mavs, and in January of 2019 James Harden scored on 61.9 points per game for the Houston Rockets.

*The Mavs are back home for just one game before heading East for a three-game road trip which starts with Monday’s game in Philadelphia and continues with a Tuesday contest in Brooklyn and a Thursday game in New York against the Knicks before they return home to host Oklahoma City on Feb. 10.

*The Bucks have lost three of their last four games. That includes Wednesday’s stunning 119-116 loss in Portland in a game where Giannis Antetokounmpo had 27 points and eight rebounds, and Damian Lillard added 25 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Milwaukee is 0-2 since Doc Rivers replaced Adrian Griffin as its coach.

*Kyrie Irving (right thumb sprain), Dereck Lively II (nose broken), Derrick Jones Jr. (left wrist sprain) and Maxi Kleber (nose fracture) are all questionable for Saturday’s game against Milwaukee, while Dante Exum (right knee bursitis) will not play against the Bucks.

*The Mavs are coming off Wednesday’s 121-97 loss in Minnesota in a game where Dallas was without its entire starting lineup due to injuries. The Mavs have played without either Luka Doncic or Kyrie Irving for 26 of their 48 games this season.

*The Bucks rallied from 10 points down early in the fourth quarter on Nov. 18 to clip the Mavs in Milwaukee, 132-125, behind 40 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists from Giannis Antetokounmpo, and 27 points and 12 assists from Damian Lillard. Kyrie Irving led the Mavs in that game with 39 points and six assists, and Luka Doncic contributed 35 points, nine rebounds and nine assists.

*Luka Doncic continues to be the leader of the Mavs with averages of 34.7 ppg, 8.6 rpg and 9.6 apg. Kyrie Irving is averaging 25.2 ppg 5.1 rpg and 5.3 apg, Tim Hardaway Jr. averages 18.3 ppg and Derrick Jones Jr. is averaging 10.1 ppg. Doncic’s rebound average is the highest among any point guard in the NBA. Richaun Holmes collected 11 points and 10 rebounds during Wednesday’s game against Minnesota.

*For the Bucks, the new-look combination of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard is still a work in progress. Antetokounmpo is fourth in the NBA in scoring (30.9 ppg) and sixth in rebounds (11.6 rpg), while Lillard is 16^th in the league at scoring at 25.1 ppg and also averages a team-high 6.8 apg. Khris Middleton is averaging 15 ppg, Brook Lopez averages 13.3 ppg and is second in the NBA in blocks (2.8 bpg), while Bobby Portis (12.3 ppg) and Malik Beasley (11.1 ppg) adds some significant scoring punch off the bench.

X: @DwainPrice