Luka Doncic created history with his performance last night, in what was unfortunately a loss for the Dallas Mavericks. The Phoenix Suns made the game look easy. They were on the money since the start and did not lack the output. They started the game strongly and led 9-0 in the opening minutes. Even after the Mavericks scored their first bucket, the job at hand seemed tough all throughout the game.
While the 114-121 loss for the Mavericks was a concerning display, Luka Doncic showed his class. He scored 45 points with 12 rebounds and 8 assists. However, it was not enough as the Suns took game 1 with a wire to wire win over the Mavs. The Suns were too good as they have been all season for almost all the teams and the Western Conference semifinal was just another example of their superiority and dominance.
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They maintained their lead throughout the game and the Mavs could not come close as they never even tied the scores. Despite a top performance from the star man, Luka Doncic, they fell short miserably. Nobody on the team got more than 20 points except, of course, Luka. The Mavericks? shortcoming was a clear sign of their inefficiency. However, Luka did something nobody has done since Kobe in 2001.
Also read: Luka breaks NBA Twitter
Luka Doncic accomplishes the massive feat to match Kobe Bryant
Luka became the youngest player to score at least 45 points and 10 rebounds in a playoff game since Kobe Bryant in 2001. With his 45 points and 12 rebounds against the Suns, Luka set the tone for the series, although not much came from his team. The fans went berserk as they praised Doncic for rewriting history books.
Luka Doncic is the youngest player with 45 points and 10 rebounds in a playoff game since Kobe Bryant in 2001 😳 pic.twitter.com/5VgTudHhpK
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 3, 2022
Luka joins Jordan, Kobe, Kareem, and Chamberlain in stats on the regular. When will people realize you can’t compare players like Ja and Trae to this dude. He is on another level
— 𝐅𝐥𝐨 🎯 (@flo_cade) May 3, 2022
https://twitter.com/Luka_Donut/status/1521352068354781184?s=20&t=72jRT99Mv0zDLx5fU-F_SA
Luka on the Mavs: pic.twitter.com/RLVyAUrNmw
— Alex (@0toHerr0) May 3, 2022
Isn’t that literally Luka rn though?
— Alex (@0toHerr0) May 3, 2022
Insanely impressive I can’t lie! But…
if we are playing the comparing apples to oranges game then Luka put up 43p17r13a at age 21 with a game winning step back three😁— Cavi (@Cavi_____) May 3, 2022
https://twitter.com/Lewcedes/status/1521352009261195264?s=20&t=72jRT99Mv0zDLx5fU-F_SA
Did Kobe win that game or lose?
— Dylan Smiley (@Smiley_DMB) May 3, 2022
Kobe NEVER had a TOV over 4.1 in his entire career.
Luka has had a TOV of at least 4.3 every year since his rookie year.
Kobe won three NBA championships in his first four seasons.
Luka has won ZERO playoff series in his first four…
— Brendan Coughlin (@bcoughlin23) May 3, 2022
Damn would have been cool if he won suns locked down the mavs team and let this man do whatever he wanted and still didn’t have a chance
— Jean Dupont (@MaxxDupont18) May 3, 2022
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The Phoenix Suns were just too good. Tactically managing the game, the Suns locked down the Mavs, who did not get any freedom and were flat-footed.?
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The Suns never trailed, jumping to a 9-0 lead in the opening minutes and staying on the gas until the final minutes. They shot 50.5% from the field, won the rebounding edge 51-36, and beat the Mavericks for the 10th straight time, counting regular-season games.
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The Suns looked much more like the team that set a franchise record with 64 wins during the season. Deandre Ayton scored 25 points, Devin Booker added 23 and the top-seeded Suns rolled to a 121-114 win to set the pace for the rest of the series.