Luka Doncic Put On A Show In The Mavericks’ 20-Point Win Over The Rockets

Luka Doncic has lived up to the hype during the early stages of his NBA career. That says a lot about the precocious Slovenian, as Doncic came to the league with perhaps the highest expectations of any European basketball player. But despite being 19, and despite being given a big role right away with the Dallas Mavericks, Doncic keeps finding ways to deliver.

His latest impressive performance came on Wednesday night against the Houston Rockets. Doncic led the Mavericks to a 128-108 victory and put on a show, scoring 20 points on 6-for-11 shooting in 24 minutes with six rebounds. He did this despite not playing in the fourth quarter, meaning he had limited opportunities to make an impression.

The good news is he managed to get the job done, anyway. From the get go, Doncic raised eyebrows, as James Harden tried checking him in the first quarter. Doncic ended up hitting a shot in Harden’s grill that was decidedly Beard-esque.

He didn’t just get the job done with his jumper, as Doncic took advantage of a defensive miscommunication by the Rockets, getting to the rim and dunking while a few Houston players made business decisions to not seriously challenge him.

To cap off his night, Doncic beat the buzzer at the end of the third quarter by drilling a jumper from just over halfcourt.

Doncic came into Wednesday’s game leading all rookies in scoring, and while he only played three quarters, he should stay atop that list, barring Deandre Ayton going Super Saiyan against the Clippers. Still, the big thing that has been on display through the first 19 games of Doncic’s NBA career is that he legitimately looks like the stage — and the workload Rick Carlisle is placing on him — are not too much for him. His experience playing and succeeding in the second-best league in the world is evident, and even when he’s not putting up gaudy numbers, Doncic is finding ways to do impressive things on a nightly basis.