Getty Luka Doncic
Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic has a high-profile fan: Three-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The Kansas City Chiefs star singled out Doncic after the Mavericks’ official X account revealed he set a franchise record.
Doncic returned Mahomes’ words in kind via his X account, calling him the G.O.A.T. In other words, he called him the greatest quarterback of all time.
Mahomes is originally from Texas and is a diehard Mavericks fan. Hence, there is likely a little bias at play here.
However, Doncic has built up a strong case as the NBA’s Most Valuable Player. In 69 games, Doncic is averaging a league-leading 33.9 points. To go with that, he averages 9.8 rebounds and 8.4 rebounds to go with 49/38/79 shooting splits from the field.
Doncic’s efforts have given the Mavericks a 49-30 record, which puts them as the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference. The last time the Mavericks had a player win the league’s Most Valuable Player was Dirk Nowitzki, who won the award in 2007.
Doncic’s rookie season coincided with Nowitzki’s final NBA season during the 2018-19 season. When it’s all said and done, he may very well have a better legacy than Nowitzki.
Luka Doncic Ranked No. 2 in MVP Rankings
Doncic’s play this season has stood out among his peers. On April 5, NBA.com’s Michael C. Wright ranked the Mavericks star No. 2 in his MVP rankings. Wright explained Doncic’s case for why he was so high up with his previous week of play.
“When he wasn’t throwing no-look crosscourt dimes Tuesday in producing his 20th triple-double of the season, Doncic splashed 5-for-11 from deep to seize the Mavericks’ single-season record for made 3-pointers (258).
“The Warriors snapped Dallas’ seven-game winning streak that night. But Doncic brought the Mavs back majorly, stepping through on the way to the bank to cash in a win Thursday against the Hawks. He scored 16 points in the second quarter.”
Doncic was ranked behind only Denver Nuggets’ star Nikola Jokic, who has won the award twice. Given how late it is in the season, the odds are against Doncic toppling Jokic for the award. However, this may be the first step towards him eventually winning the award in the future.
What also hurts his case is the Mavericks, who have clinched a playoff spot, don’t have one of the best records in the league. If they take another jump, that will likely help him.
Luka Doncic Ranked No. 2 in The Ringer’s Top 100
The Ringer’s Zack Kram released his top 100 players in the NBA in an April 10 story. In his rankings, he had Doncic No. 2 behind, again, Jokic.
Kram explained why Doncic is so impressive.
“Doncic is crafty and full of guile, he’s blessed with useful size and deadly deceleration powers on drives, and oh, by the way, he’s also shooting a career best from 3-point range. He was a first-team All-NBA honoree four times in his first five seasons, and he’s still improving. LeBron James and Kevin Durant are the only players in NBA history with more points than Luka through their age-24 seasons.”
Despite how good the Mavericks star has been, Kram also explained why there is pressure on Luka to make a substantial playoff run.
“But LeBron made the Finals in his age-22 season. Durant made it at 23. On a statistical basis, Luka is one of (the) best playoff performers in NBA history—33 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists per game—and he’s come close to a Finals trip before, with his run to the conference finals at age 22. But close isn’t good enough in the NBA. After Dallas missed the playoffs last season and traded almost all its future draft picks to go all in on this season, the stakes are high for Luka to keep pace with his historical peers, on both a team level and an individual one.”