Source: Todd Kirkland / Getty / Luka Doncic
If you love seeing defense in the NBA, this week wasn’t for you. Just days after Joel Embiid dropped 70 points on Victor Wembayama, Luka Doncic went ham on the Atlanta Hawks for 73 points.
Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic had a night in Atlanta, putting on a show in State Farm Arena, dropping a career-high 73 points and leading his squad to a 148-143 over Trae Young and the Hawks.
With his impressive scoring performance, Doncic has the highest-scoring game in the NBA this season, an honor Philadelphia 76ers’ big man Joel Embiid only held for a mere few days after smoking the San Antonio Spurs.
With his performance, Doncic joins an elite company, tying Wilt Chamberlain and David Thompson for the fourth-highest output in the history of the NBA.
Chamberlain still holds the record for most points in a game with 100 points; he also dropped 78 points in a game. Right behind him is the late Kobe Bryant with his iconic 81-point game against the Toronto Raptors.
Speaking on being mentioned with those names, Dončić said, “Those names are special. It’s unbelievable.”
Doncic’s 73-point night marked the NBA’s 15th 70-point game, and the Slovenia hooper became the 10th player to reach the plateau.
Some “Luka magic” was involved in achieving the milestone thanks to two three-point plays.
Luka Wanted To Win
Doncic, who has been hooping this season, averaging 34.6 points per game, said the performance was “probably at the top” of his career, adding he was trying to get the dub.
“We’ve been struggling lately,” he said, coming into Friday’s night game. The Mavericks were on a three-game losing streak. “Mindset was [to] get a win. We played great.”
It was clear he was in store for a great night, dropping 41 points at halftime, breaking Dirk Nowitzki’s franchise record for points in a half, and dropping 57 points by the end of the third quarter.
“He was hot. He was going,” Trae Young said. “We were trying everything. We were trying to trap him.”
NBA fans on X, formerly Twitter, had plenty to say about Friday’s night in the association that also saw Phoenix Suns Devin Booker drop 62 points in a losing effort.
See those reactions in the gallery below.
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