DALLAS — Even with postseason implications on the line, it’s been clear for more than two months what Wednesday night was going to be about: Luka Doncic making his return to Dallas to face the Mavericks for his first time as a visiting player since being traded to the Lakers.
The white t-shirts on every seat inside the American Airlines Center, which read “Hvala za vse” – the Slovenian phrase for “Thank you for everything,” made it evident.
The pregame festivities, including an emotional tribute video that forced Doncic to hold back tears, made it clear that Wednesday was about more than just the game being played on the court.
“After that video, I was, like, ‘There’s no way I’m playing this game’,” Doncic said after the game. “It was so many emotions and I just went out there and just played basketball.”
Once the game tipped off, and Doncic was able to get settled in for his first game in Dallas since Dec. 25, a scene that Mavericks fans became accustomed to watching from Doncic for 6½ seasons played out – but this time, he was doing it as an opponent.
Doncic finished with a season-high-tying 45 points to go with eight rebounds, six assists and four steals in a 112-97 Lakers victory over his former team. He shot 16 for 28 from the field, including 7 for 10 from 3-point range.
“The moment with the tribute video and him sitting by himself and getting to actually live that, live in the moment and allowing himself to be vulnerable,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “His teammates’ support, some of his teammates got emotional, some of the coaches got emotional – it’s a beautiful moment. The video was great, but I think just his ability to then go perform, lights turn on, he’s teary-eyed still as we walk out on the court for the tip ball.
“To have the emotional resolve to then go put on that kind of performance, it’s superhuman. All his teammates know that too ’cause I think all his teammates can empathize with what he just went through over the last couple months. And maybe some anticipation, maybe some dread, but certainly a ton of emotions. And then he went and did that. It’s big-time. And he led us.”
Doncic wasted no time getting started and knocked down step-back jumper after step-back jumper over any Mavericks defender who switched onto him, making a trio of 3-pointers en route to 14 first-quarter points.
He got into the paint nearly at will, leading to him scoring more than half of the Lakers’ points in the first half, recording 31 points (11-of-16 shooting, 6 for 8 from 3-point range) to go with three assists and three rebounds.
But when he started to go cold, the Lakers reinforced what Redick said pregame: they’d have his back.
LeBron James (27 points, seven rebounds) scored 13 in the fourth, a quarter the Lakers won 29-21 after having an 83-76 lead after the third, helping the Lakers come back from being down after a Klay Thompson 3-pointer put the Mavericks up 87-85 with nine minutes left. The Lakers had led by as many as 13 in the third before a 15-2 Dallas run.
“That was our only concern, was for us to support him and be there for him in whatever fashion or whatever way we could be throughout the whole entire game,” James said. “That was our only motive, our only thought process. Everything was to make sure that we were there for him in any way, shape, or form.”
And when it came to closing time, Doncic delivered, scoring seven points late en route to a victory that clinched at least a top-six seed in the Western Conference playoff bracket.
It marked the first time since the 2019-20 season, when the Lakers won the NBA championship, that they’ve clinched a playoff spot without having to go through the Play-In Tournament (seeds 7-10).
“It’s very important to get that week off,” James said. “Being a part of the play-in the last couple of years, just anything could happen. So for us to know that we’re in the top six, I mean in the format that it is right now, anytime you can get some rest … [expletive], I speak for myself – anytime I get a week off from not playing ball, I’ll take it. I’ll take it.”
Anthony Davis, who went to the Mavericks as part of the seismic trade that brought Doncic to the Lakers, finished with 13 points (5-of-13 shooting), 11 rebounds and six assists in his first game against his former team.
“Different,” James said of playing against Davis after being teammates for 5½ seasons. “Obviously we had our own emotions built into it, so it was just different. That’s the first time we played [against each other] since ’19, when he was in New Orleans. It was different, man. And it definitely ain’t got comfortable yet with him being on the other side, for sure.”
This isn’t the first time Doncic played the Mavericks. He had a triple-double (19 points, 15 rebounds and 12 assists) in the Lakers’ 107-99 home win on Feb. 25, only 23 days after the trade.
Davis didn’t play in that one, sitting out with an injury.
“It was definitely weird,” said Austin Reaves, who had 11 points and four assists. “I used to tell A all the time, if we ever were to play on a different team, it was like, ‘I’m gonna go at you.’ And I’m not gonna lie, there was a couple times I was just driving the middle of the paint and I saw him and I was like, ‘Yep, I’m gonna pass it.’ I know what he is capable of doing. I’ve seen it firsthand as a teammate of his. The way he could dominate on both ends of the floor.
“It was definitely weird, but definitely made a layup on him so I’m gonna let him hear about that. But yeah, I’m just happy to see him happy.”