Luka Doncic posts triple-double in revenge game against Mavericks, Lakers win 107-99

The Dallas Mavericks traveled to Los Angeles to take on the Lakers on Tuesday night. That meant a matchup against Luka Doncic for the first time since the shocking trade that sent him to LA in a game that was sure to have high tension and emotions. Nico Harrison was in attendance, just in case Doncic needed any extra motivation.

Dallas was still missing Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II, Caleb Martin, and Daniel Gafford, but they did get Dwight Powell back for this game. They started Kyrie Irving, former Lakers Max Christie, Klay Thompson, P.J. Washington, and Kessler Edwards. LA rolled with Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Rui Hachimura, and Jaxson Hayes.

Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) reacts against the Dallas Mavericks during the first quarter at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Luka Doncic took the first shot of the game, as you'd expect, and it fell off, but he also got a block on the other end. He'd get on the board a few minutes later, then found LeBron James in transition for a three as the Lakers took a 9-2 lead early. He'd pick up a technical foul less than three minutes into the game after the refs missed a blatant foul, and Doncic let the officials know about it. But an and-one a few possessions later helped make up for it.

A freshly shaven Kyrie Irving hit back-to-back threes, including jumping a pass directed to Doncic to get out in transition, but Doncic answered with back-to-back threes himself (one would be taken away after review found he was out of bounds before shooting). Austin Reaves picked up the offense from there, and the Lakers would have a 28-20 lead after the first quarter, despite 12 points from Kyrie Irving to this point.

Dallas' offense was struggling to knock down shots despite some good open looks in the second quarter. The Lakers hit back-to-back threes to open up the quarter as they extended the lead to nine, and finally got the lead to 10 as Austin Reaves drove to the basket, and Luka Doncic checked back in.

The Mavericks got the lead down to six briefly, but Doncic found Jarred Vanderbilt and Austin Reaves for back-to-back threes as the lead worked up to 11, with the pass to Reaves being one of his signature behind-the-head passes. That would force a timeout by the Mavericks a few minutes later.

But Dallas' offense continued to struggle after the timeout. Their only points over the next few minutes came from the free-throw line as LA opened up a 15-point lead. Kyrie Irving and Max Christie hit threes before the end of the half to cut the lead into single digits, but the Lakers had a 59-51 lead heading into the break.

Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving (11) shoots the ball against the Los Angeles Lakers during the first quarter at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Klay Thompson hit back-to-back threes early in the third quarter as Dallas worked the lead down to five in the opening minutes before LeBron James helped build the lead back up to nine. Then, an 8-2 run got the Mavericks right back within three, closed off by a three in transition by Spencer Dinwiddie.

Dallas kept pace over the next few minutes, getting more points from Dinwiddie. Then, Dante Exum hit a three from the corner to cut the lead to one before the end of the quarter. Dallas had done a much better job defending against Luka Doncic and LeBron James on drives, but the Lakers still held a slim 78-77 lead heading into the final frame.

LeBron James put the pressure on Dallas to start the fourth quarter, scoring or assisting on five of the Lakers' first six buckets in the period. But Klay Thompson was there to answer the bell for the Mavericks, scoring 11 points in the first five minutes of the frame. His final three-pointer in that flurry tied the game at 88, then James hit a three on an assist from Luka Doncic (giving him a triple-double), and Naji Marshall answered that in the corner on the other end. This physical game had turned into an offensive heater.

After the game tied at 91, the Lakers scored five straight points to take control of the game again. Kyrie Irving got the soft roll on a three-pointer to cut back into the lead with about 3:40 to go to break that spurt, but Dorian Finney-Smith, another former Maverick, flushed a putback dunk as the lead was back at four.

LeBron James also flushed in a putback dunk to extend the lead to six; then, Max Christie missed a three with about two minutes to go. Rui Hachimura went 1/2 at the free-throw line with 1:30 to go, pushing the lead to three possessions and a tough hill to overcome in a short time. Kyrie Irving missed a three over Luka Doncic on the next possession, and Hachimura bullied his way for a layup with 1:05 to go to essentially ice the game.

Kyrie Irving converted an and-one on the next possession, then Dallas forced a tie-up on defense. But LeBron James was able to control the tip and hit a layup on the other end, giving the Lakers a 107-99 win.

The Mavericks struggled to score in this game, shooting just 35/98 (35.7%) from the floor. If it wasn't for Klay Thompson and Kyrie Irving each hitting five threes, the numbers would've looked even rougher. But the Lakers have been one of the best defenses in the NBA over the last month.

Kyrie Irving led the Mavericks with 35 points and 7 rebounds, but he also had four turnovers. Klay Thompson had a big second half to finish with 22 points on 5/10 shooting from the three-point line. But former Laker Max Christie was the only other Maverick in double figures with 10 points.

Luka Doncic finished with a triple-double, finishing with 19 points, 15 rebounds, 12 assists, three steals, and two blocks against his former team. But LeBron James led the Lakers with 27 points, followed by Austin Reaves with 20. Rui Hachimura with 15 points was the other Laker in double figures.

Dallas returns home to play the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday night.

Stick with MavericksGameday for more FREE coverage of the Dallas Mavericks throughout the 2024-25 Season

Follow MavericksGameday on Twitter and Austin Veazey on Twitter

More Dallas Mavericks News

Kyrie Irving sounds off before facing Luka Doncic in Mavericks-Lakers matchup

Lakers waive former Dallas Maverick to sign former Top 5 pick

Former Mavericks executive goes off on Patrick Dumont over Luka Doncic remarks

Luka Doncic’s father says that his son has already moved on from Mavericks-Lakers trade