Klay Thompson knew Luka Doncic was special. Because he was someone who brought Kobe Bryant out of the house to watch him live. “Kobe doesn’t just give that love to those who don’t earn it,” Klay had said. On Tuesday, watching Luka play against the Mavs, Mamba must be smiling sitting among the stars, convinced that he invested his love in someone who deserved it. After all, the 25-year-old just staged the sequel of Kobe’s iconic “Amnesty that” game— that, too, on the very next day of its 12th anniversary!

In 2011, the NBA introduced an amnesty clause that would allow every team the opportunity to release one player and completely clear them from their salary cap. The player would still receive their salary, but the team would get some cap flexibility. The Lakers’ 2012-13 season had been disappointing, as Kobe, Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol, and Steve Nash struggled to pull off a show together. So, the outspoken Mavs then-owner Mark Cuban did a straightforward calculation just days ahead of the Lakers’ February 24, 2013 matchup against his side.

“If you look at their payroll, even if Dwight (Howard) comes back, you’ve got to ask the question: Should they amnesty Kobe?” Cuban said on the radio show. Well, Kobe finished that game with 38 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists as the Lakers left Dallas with a 103-99 victory. In the fourth quarter, Kobe went a perfect 5-of-5 from the field for 14 points, with seven of those coming in the last three minutes, along with an assist on a Nash 3-pointer. But the best of his best shots came after the game ended.

Hitting X (Twitter then), Kobe wrote, “Amnesty THAT. “ Cuban had to resort to damage control by publicly praising Kobe for the clapback. However, 12 years later, it looks like the Mavs have not yet abandoned their habit of dismissing a generational talent. And this time it’s Nico Harrison who had to get it back. No, he did not get a social media call out from the soft-spoken Slovenian. Rather, Luka did what his limited edition Gatorade bottles’ catchlines ask to do: Let the work talk!

For this entire 23-day period after the trade, Luka has maintained exemplary calm and grace during every conversation about the trade. However, emotions did run high on his iconic night. That was evident when a little over two minutes into the game, Luca got whistled for an early technical foul by referee Pat Fraher for overzealously protesting a non-call. Two teammates rushed over to Doncic to make sure it went no farther. But emotions did not take the target away.

Less than 7 minutes into the game, Kyrie Irving (whom Luka fondly calls ‘Hermano’ or brother) buried a triple in Luka’s face and then added another off a steal to give the Mavericks an early 14-13 lead. With 5:47 remaining in the first quarter, Luka answered back with a tough 3-pointer of his own and quickly fired off a second. On his way back to the defense, he turned to the Maverick’s bench and threw an ice-cold stare at them! “You know he wants to make a statement and boy has he here,” Greg Anthony said in the commentary. Quite the Mamba touch, isn’t it?

But somehow, or the other, Luka could not find the rhythm that saw him notching 32 points against Denver. He missed 11 of his 17 shots and was wild from 3-point range. A few unusual misses on Long 3s probably spoke volumes about the pressure he was carrying. Moreover, throughout the game, the Mavericks did a great job of restricting Luka, which made him fight for each of the 19 points he scored. But wait. The night was supposed to belong to him no? So it did.

Luka Doncic defines his revenge night with superb playmaking

So what, he did not score points? Luka compensated that with 15 rebounds and 12 assists to notch the 81st triple-double of his career. His first as a Laker. That must have hit the Mavs hard because until today they were the only team against which Luka did not have a triple-double. Thanks to the trade, now he has one against each of the 30 teams. This is a feat that only LeBron James and Russell Westbrook have attained to date.

Luka-magic was on full display in his exceptional passing, which often gets overlooked. Remember what Dalton Knecht said after he came back to the Lakers after the botched trade with the Hornets? “They told me the first thing back is no matter what, when he has the ball, be ready to shoot. He’s going to get it to you, no matter what. And seeing a couple of passes to AR (Austin Reaves), Bron (LeBron), he wasn’t even looking. So it was crazy. I’m excited.” Precisely. The Luka-LeBron pair picked up exactly from where they left with the Nuggets.

In that fourth quarter, the Lakers’ fans saw another glimpse of what Doncic and James can become. James took over the game, scoring 16 of his 27 points in the final period — including three key buckets on passes from Doncic to cap his superb playmaking performance. And when it comes to passing, once again, Luka ensured that his former team regretted trading him away as he brought back some historic play in the Crypto Arena.

Back on December 12, 2023, Luka, in Maverick’s uniform, was up against the Lakers. The Mavs were trailing 100-99 with about 9 minutes left in the 4th quarter. On that night, Luka’s current teammates Jaxon Hayes and Rui Hachimura stood stunned as Luka seeded an insane behind-the-back pass, bypassing two of them, to find a wide-open Dante Exum who converted it to a 3. On Tuesday, the Mavs were on the receiving end of such an incredible pass.

In the second quarter, Luka drove the lane, while being guarded by Kessler Edwards. As he got into the paint, Luka suddenly flung the basketball backward, behind his head, and without even looking, straight to Austin Reaves who did not miss the 3. But despite all the on-court heroics, it looks like Luka was distressed.

After the game, Luka joined the TNT crew for a conversation. He was asked, “Luka how does it feel being over?” He instantly replied, “Great Man. I can’t wait to go to sleep!” For now. Probably it is only the first chapter of Luka’s revenge against the Mavs. Emotions will be even higher when he travels to Dallas to play in the American Airlines Center on April 9. That’s the arena that made him what he is today. Can Luka bring on the killer in him on that night?