Lakers' Luka Doncic Makes NBA History After Latest Triumph vs 76ers

Dec 7, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) dribbles past Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey during the second quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Five-time All-NBA Los Angeles Lakers superstar guard Luka Doncic has joined rarified NBA air after he guided his club to a 112-108 victory against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday.

Doncic, 26, had missed the Lakers' last two games to celebrate the birth of his second daughter. Los Angeles had split those contests — a 123-120 win over the Toronto Raptors on Thursday and a 126-105 blowout defeat to the rising Boston Celtics on Friday — in his absence.

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Per StatMuse, Doncic has ratcheted up his standing in league history following the Philadelphia clash.

Luka Doncic vs PHI:

31 PTS
15 REB
11 AST
2 BLK

Passes Nikola Jokic in 30-point triple-doubles — only Oscar Robertson has more. pic.twitter.com/PYFEI4FeVq

— StatMuse (@statmuse) December 8, 2025

With his 31-point, 15-rebound, 11-assist triple-double against Philadelphia, Doncic has now notched a whopping 49 30-point triple-doubles, leapfrogging three-time MVP Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic and 2017 MVP Sacramento Kings point guard Russell Westbrook for the solo second-most in league history.

Who's first?

Hall of Fame former Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks point guard Oscar Robertson, of course, who has 106 triple-doubles featuring 30 or more points. Rounding out the top five is Doncic's own Lakers teammate, 21-time All-NBA combo forward LeBron James, who has 42 games of 30-plus-point triple-doubles.

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James notched his best game of the season Sunday against a mostly-healthy 76ers squad (Philadelphia was missing key forward Kelly Oubre Jr.), though it was not another triple-double. Instead, the four-time league MVP scored 29 points on 12-of-17 shooting from the field (4-of-6 from distance), grabbed seven boards, dished out six dimes, swiped a steal and blocked one shot.

James took over to save the day in the game's fourth period, scoring a team-most 12 points in the frame on 5-of-6 shooting (2-of-2 from 3-point land), grabbing three boards and passing for three dimes.

lebron james is Backpic.twitter.com/9ZPRDwwAx9

— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) December 8, 2025

The 6-foot-9 superstar, playing in just his seventh contest of the season, is now averaging 16.1 points on .464/.333/.545 shooting splits, 7.6 dishes, 4.7 rebounds, and 0.7 steals per.

That scoring output is the lowest it's ever been.

Part of the reason James is less of a scoring force this season is because the 40-year-old doesn't need to be anymore.

LA's Top Two Scorers — Neither of Whom is LeBron James

Through 17 healthy games for the 17-6 Lakers this year, Doncic has been averaging 35.0 points on .472/.335/.810 shooting splits, 9.2 rebounds, 9.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.6 blocks a night.

Lakers guard Austin Reaves, meanwhile, is averaging 28.4 points while slashing .509/.370/.874, 6.7 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals in his 20 games. That dynamic backcourt tandem of Doncic and Reaves is clearly the club's scoring future now.

For more news and notes on the Los Angeles Lakers, visit Los Angeles Lakers on SI.