Mavs' Luka Doncic Primed to Reach 10,000 NBA Career Points vs. Suns
PHOENIX — As the Dallas Mavericks gear up to face off against the Phoenix Suns to cap off a five-game NBA Christmas Day slate on Monday, one storyline to watch is Luka Doncic reaching an impressive milestone.
“Enjoy your Christmas, man," Doncic said. "Not a lot of people get to play on Christmas Day. Might be my third or fourth, so it’s just a special day to play basketball.”
Doncic enters his next performance with 9,989 total points scored in his six-year career, meaning he is 11 points away from reaching the 10,000 mark. Doing so would make him eligible for the all-time scoring leaderboard.
“When you’re 12, 13, 14, and you go to a different country (Real Madrid, in Spain) to understand how to play the game,” Kidd said. “They taught him the game at a high level. His dad played the game. I think it’s just in the blood, the DNA, of knowing how to play at a very, very high level.
“Luka, he’s in the 1 percent of basketball players – Giannis, Embiid, Joker – those are the names mentioned with him," Kidd continued. "I think it’s just the fundamentals of his talent, his build, his speed which makes him special.”
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Doncic continues to make NBA history after passing Larry Bird for the ninth most career triple-doubles earlier this season. Doncic recently surpassed James Harden on the leaderboard for the fourth-most 30-point triples ever and only trails LeBron James by one of these performances.
“I mean obviously a lot. We all know who he is, what he’s doing in his 21st year in the NBA, which is unbelievable," Doncic said of James. "So, it means a lot.”
Once Doncic reaches the 10,000-point threshold, he'll be eligible for the NBA all-time leaders statistical leaderboard. His career average of 28.0 points per game will trail only Michael Jordan (30.1) and Wilt Chamberlain (30.1).
Regarding franchise accolades, Doncic already has the most games scoring at least 35, 40, 45, or 50 points in Mavs history, along with recently passing Jason Terry for the sixth most in franchise history. The Slovenian superstar has done significant re-writing of the team history book and will continue.
Doncic continues to produce MVP-caliber results for the Mavs, averaging 32.9 points, 9.1 assists, and 8.6 rebounds in 27 games this season. Already a four-time All-NBA First-Team nominee, he appears to be in a prime position to earn the honor once again if he sustains his level of play.
