Luka Doncic couldn’t have asked for a better performance in his return to Dallas, tallying 45 points, seven 3-pointers, eight rebounds and six assists in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 112-97 win over the Mavericks.
Doncic continued his impressive play on Friday, guiding the Lakers to a 140-109 win over the Houston Rockets.
The Slovenian put up another near 40-point night, tallying 39 points on 13-of-19 shooting and 5-of-9 from distance, eight rebounds and seven assists.
In doing so, Doncic now joins Kobe Bryant as the only Lakers players to record 35+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists and 5+ 3-pointers made in back-to-back games.
“Luka Doncic tallied 35+ PTS, 5+ REB, 5+ AST, & 5+ 3PM in back-to-back games!” NBA History wrote on X. “He joins Kobe Bryant (Dec. 15-17, 2006) as the ONLY players in Lakers franchise history to accomplish this feat.
Bryant became the first Lakers player to accomplish this feat in December 2006. He tallied 53 points, five 3-pointers, ten rebounds and eight assists in a Dec. 15 win over the Rockets. In the following game, an overtime loss to the Wizards, Kobe finished with 45 points, seven 3-pointers, eight rebounds and ten assists.
With one game remaining in the regular season, Doncic and the Lakers have clinched the No. 3 seed in the West. As the standings sit on Saturday morning, Los Angeles would face Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
The Lakers will conclude the regular season on Sunday against the Trail Blazers.
