TORONTO – By collecting his 79th career triple-double during Saturday’s 125-118 triumph over the Toronto Raptors, Dallas Mavericks point
guard Luka Dončić passed Wilt Chamberlain and James Harden to climb into sole possession of seventh place on the NBA’s all-time triple-double list.
The next person on the list Dončić is none other than Jason Kidd who happens to be the Mavs’ coach, and who also happens to be in control of the playing time Dončić receives.
“I guess I got to sit him,” joked Kidd, who has 107 triple-doubles. “Nah, I’m not going to sit him.”
Dončić already had a triple-double in Saturday’s game before the third quarter was history. He finished the night with 30 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists in leading the Mavs to their seventh straight victory and 11th in their last 12 games.
And this comes on the heels of Thursday’s 137-101 win over the Washington Wizards when Dončić carved out his first triple-double of the season with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
“That’s an incredible feat for Luka,” Kidd said. “When you talk about his skill set filling up the stat sheet, he’s had two (triple-doubles) here, and he can run them off.
“We always expect him to have a triple-double, and sometimes I think he plans for triple-doubles. But I think right now you can see that he’s starting to get into a groove.”
Dončić downplays the superior way he’s been dominating a game, saying: “I’m just playing basketball the way I play.”
The way Dončić played Saturday included him dropping a no-look over the shoulder pass that Kyrie Irving completed by firing in a three-pointer. And then there was the three-point bomb Dončić banked in from near midcourt to end the second quarter.
“He’s getting everybody involved, he’s rebounding the ball, but also he’s scoring,” Kidd said. “You can see that his shooting is starting to pick up from long range. He’s starting to knock them down.”
Here are the other takeaways from the Mavs’ seven-point win over the Raptors.
IRVING SET THE TONE: Irving got things rolling in Saturday’s game by pouring in 16 of his 29 points in the first quarter. That included scoring 14 of the final 17 points the Mavs tallied in the quarter. During one 3:27 sequence, Irving nailed four consecutive three-pointers. He finished the game converting 9-of-14 shots, including making 6-of-9 three-pointers.
KLAY HAD A VERY GOOD DAY: Klay Thompson re-discovered his shooting stroke Saturday as he scored 20 points on 8-of-16 shots. It was just the fourth time this season Thompson shot at least 50 percent from the field while attempting at least 10 field goals. In playing 25 minutes, Thompson was 3-of-9 from beyond the three-point arc and also grabbed five rebounds.
SPREADING THE WEALTH: With six players scoring at least 10 points against the Raptors, the Mavs continue to be gracious in spreading the wealth. It marks the 10th time in the last 11 games that the Mavs have had at least six players score a minimum of 10 points in a game. And the Mavs are 10-1 in those games.
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