Slovenian basketball superstar triple-double in Lakers win
Slovenian basketball superstar Luka Dončić notched a triple-double in a 107:99 win of his Los Angeles Lakers against the Dallas Mavericks, the team that recently traded him to the Lakers, CE Report quotes The Slovenia Times.
Posting his first triple-double with the Lakers in what was his fifth game for the LA team, he scored 19 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and handed out 12 assists.
He did not have a good shooting night in Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on 25 February, but was involving his teammates and worked well with the team's other superstar, LeBron James, who scored 27 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.
Dončić was visibly fired up against the Mavericks, which surprisingly shipped him to the Lakers at the beginning of the month for Anthony Davis, who is sidelined with an injury and tried to prove to them that they made a mistake trading him.
Spending more than 35 minutes on the floor, Dončić was also very active on defence, adding three steals and two blocks to the stat sheet. He also sunk six out of the eight awarded free throws as he was attacking the rim aggressively.
The Slovenian, who made some decisive plays towards the end of the match, showed emotions during the game, turning towards the Mavericks' bench at one moment as he buried a three-pointer and giving them a few choice words in the process.
Mavericks' general manager Nico Harrison was not spared by the fans in the arena, either, as they chanted "Thank you, Nico!" as Dončić was shooting free throws in the second quarter.
Asked about the game by the NBA on TNT crew, the 26-year-old from Ljubljana said: "I can't even explain it. I think in the first quarter, in the second quarter, I didn't know what was happening. It was different. I can't even explain."
He said he was "hot" but could not make many shots, adding that he was just glad that the Lakers got a win.
Asked about the aggressive defence strategy against him employed by his former coach Jason Kidd, Dončić said "you have to accept what the defence gives you. I was trying to read the game."
He felt charitable ahead of this important match. In partnership with Jordan Brand, he decided to cover parking fees for a lot right across the arena for many fans attending the game.
