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Luka Doncic records triple-double to lead Lakers past Mavericks

February 26, 2025

LOS ANGELES — All eyes were on Luka Doncic, anticipating his every move in a Lakers uniform in his first game against his former team on Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena.

Sections of Lakers fans chanted “Thank you, Nico!” whenever Doncic was at the free-throw line, referencing Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison, who led Dallas in trading Doncic to L.A. just over three weeks ago.

But on a night when Doncic once again struggled with his shot in a Lakers jersey, it was his ability and willingness to step up in other areas, and set up his teammates, that helped the Lakers pull out the 107-99 victory over the Mavericks.

“The closure is going to take a while, I think,” Doncic said after the game. “It’s not ideal. But, like I said, I’m glad this game is over. There was a lot of emotions. But we go little by little, and every day is better.”

Doncic finished with 19 points, 15 rebounds and 12 assists to go with three steals and a pair of blocked shots for his 81st career triple-double – the first 80 of which came in a Mavericks uniform – on an emotional night for the 25-year-old Slovenian superstar, who was blindsided by the seismic trade.

“It was just so weird, the moments,” Doncic said. “Felt like I didn’t know what I was doing. And I’m glad we got the win.”

Doncic shot just 35.2% (6 for 17) from the field (including a 1-for-7 showing from 3-point range), but he was still instrumental with his playmaking on a night when the Mavericks defended him aggressively.

“Obviously there’s a lot of emotion that goes in when you give so much to a franchise and you sacrifice for a franchise and you have that type of love and respect for a franchise – throughout all the journeys,” Lakers star LeBron James responded when asked how he thought Doncic handled Tuesday. “They went to the Finals (last June). He’s grown from being an 18, 19-year-old kid to now a 25-year-old man with a family.

“So you kind of grow into a family with the franchise and when you move on or they move on from you, it’s very emotional, obviously. It’s very taxing. It’s probably a lot of things that were going on in his head that probably didn’t even involve the game itself. And with that said, I thought he handled it tremendously.”

Doncic’s final assist to James (27 points, 12 rebounds and three assists) on a layup with 32 seconds left sealed the win for the Lakers (35-21), their third straight and 15th in the past 19 games dating to Jan. 15.

“We understood as his teammates that we wanted to try to get this win for him,” James said. “Obviously, we know what transpired not too long ago. As his teammates, we wanted just to back him in any way, shape or form. Happy that I was – along with my teammates – able to make a couple of plays down the stretch to get him this win. I know he probably won’t say it, but I think it means something to him for sure.”

Doncic warmly greeted his former teammates, but he also took a few portentous looks at the Dallas bench during the night.

“It was just a lot of emotions and not much sleep,” Doncic said. “I can’t even explain. It was a different game. I’m just glad it’s over, honestly.”

Doncic added: “It’s definitely gonna help in the long process.”

Austin Reaves had 20 points, five assists and three rebounds for the Lakers, while Rui Hachimura added 15 points and six rebounds.

The Lakers struggled against the Mavericks’ aggressive defensive schemes, which featured trapping and double-teams Doncic in the post and pick-and-rolls.

“There was some good stuff that came from the doubles on the empty side [post-ups],” Lakers coach JJ Redick said. “But overall, I just didn’t think we played well out of that. And then the [traps] from the top, really just very undisciplined with our spacing and that led to some tougher shots, some late-clock situations.”

Dallas (31-28) tied the score at 91-all on a 3-pointer from Naji Marshall with just over six minutes left.

But James took over late, scoring 16 of his points in the fourth quarter and seven of the team’s final 16, including a putback dunk off a Doncic missed step-back 15-footer for a 102-96 lead with 2:25 left.

“He’s doing that at 40 years old, which is insane,” Doncic said of James. “Taking over in the fourth quarter. It was unbelievable to watch.”

Dorian Finney-Smith also made several crucial plays late: setting a screen that freed Doncic for a layup to put the Lakers ahead 94-91; and a putback dunk off a James missed floater to give the Lakers a 98-94 lead and a clutch steal.

“He normally does a fantastic job of just setting the tone with the toughness,” Redick said of Finney-Smith. “And we had some fun yesterday with the team defining what a banshee is in different cultures. And define what a banshee is in Laker culture. And I think Doe is a banshee. He leads that charge for us and sets the tone with winning basketball plays.”

Kyrie Irving led the Mavericks with a game-high 35 points, seven rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocked shots.

Klay Thompson made five 3-point shots on his way to 22 points and eight rebounds for Dallas, which hit 17 3-pointers.

Former Laker Max Christie scored all 10 of his points in the first half.

“I’ve kept tabs. I’ve watched a lot of their games, really for him,” Reaves said of Christie. “I wanna see his growth and what he continues to do and he’s playing really good basketball, which isn’t surprising. I think everybody in the locker room knew the talent he was.”

Former Lakers big man Anthony Davis couldn’t play due to an adductor injury, but he received the biggest of several standing ovations after the Lakers aired a lengthy tribute video in the first quarter.

“We know what A.D. was for this franchise and what he did for this franchise from the moment we got him to hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy, to All-Star nods, to we won the inaugural In-Season Tournament,” James said of Davis. “And many, many dominant nights. Not only in this building but also on the road as well. Obviously, our friendship goes without saying. One of my best friends and it was great to see him get that recognition and him get that moment.”

Orange County Register

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Luka Doncic records triple-double to lead Lakers past Mavericks

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