The Bay Area was buzzing on Sunday night with all eyes on the return of Klay Thompson, for a second time since his Dallas move. But it was Luka Doncic who stole the show. With his outstanding triple-double performance, the Slovenian star delivered a stunning blow to Steve Kerr and his Warriors. But don’t you dare mess up his numbers as a reporter found out later on last night.

During the postgame press conference, a reporter mentioned Doncic’s stat line on defense, stating that the 25-year-old had 2 blocks and 2 steals. Doncic quickly interrupted to candidly rectify that he had actually recorded 3 steals in the game. Well, this can be expected after the bunch of criticisms the Mavs star got for his unimpressive defense. While the combo guard has been a powerhouse on Dallas’ offense, his defensive impact has often been questioned. However, he has expressed that he is working hard to make significant improvements on that end of the floor as well.

When asked by the reporter about paying special attention to his defense, Doncic replied, “I mean, just, you know, doing it for my team, for myself. I know I had to do better. You know, and I think there’s still a lot of improvement, but I’m trying to be better, especially in defensive end. And when I’m locked in in defense, you know, it helps the whole team. So, just gotta do consistently and just follow what I’m being doing, lately.”

In high-intensity games, when there’s no help on either end of the court, Doncic often feels pressured and struggles defensively. His inconsistencies and slower movements have sometimes hurt the franchise, particularly in their narrow loss to the Jazz this season. If he can step up on defense, it would relieve a lot of the load on the Mavericks. Fortunately, he’s been heading in that direction. The 5-time All-Star currently holds a defensive rating of 108 and averages 2.1 steals per game. Now that he’s focusing on polishing his defensive skills, the narrative around him not being a good defender might change by the end of the season, you never know.

Luka Doncic’s triple-double masterclass against the Warriors

Besides the blocks and corrected steals, Doncic guarded the rim well, grabbing 9 defensive rebounds alongside two in the offense. And what more can be said about his offense? He’s been a pro in that area since his rookie season. Doncic lit up the Chase Center with 16 explosive field goals, missing 7 of them but it didn’t seem to affect the ultimate result.

Doncic spread his magic from beyond the arc too with 6-of-11 shots flaunting his impressive shooting skills. Not only did he put up 45 points to his name, but he also contributed greatly as a playmaker, assisting his teammates with 13 successful passes. His overall effort played a vital role in the Mavericks’ 143-133 victory.

The Clippers will be the next to witness the all-rounder Doncic in back-to-back clashes at the American Airlines Center. So, James Harden and Co. will need to be prepared, as they cannot afford to underestimate Doncic, thinking that he won’t be a threat on the defensive end.