how many points does luka doncic have tonight. The Denver Nuggets’ overtime victory over the Phoenix Suns capped up a thrilling day of NBA action on Christmas. Nikola Joki was named the game’s most valuable player. While the Nuggets’ victory was welcome, it wasn’t the week’s most interesting game, and Joki’s 40-point triple-double wasn’t the week’s most outstanding individual performance; those honors go to the Dallas Mavericks and Luka Doni, respectively.
NBA writers Melissa Rohlin, Ric Bucher, and Yaron Weitzman examine who the real contenders are in each conference and how the recent string of stellar performances has affected the MVP race, if at all.
A 60-point, 21-rebound, 10-assist performance by Luka Doni. Described in one word.
I’ll say two things, Weitzman. The best way I can explain this performance is that it appeared implausible at the time; for example, I turned the game off with about two minutes left and the Knicks up by nine because I’m old, and it was late, and I believed the game was over.
Additionally, I will mention that this is only the most recent instance of the Mavericks’ failure to provide for Luka. The Mavericks nearly lost despite him putting up one of the best single-game performances in NBA history. Is there a team in the NBA that, after Luka’s departure, would have a worse overall talent level?
Instead of just using one word to describe his performance, Rohlin suggests I use a single statistic to put it in context: NBA teams had lost every game in the previous 20 seasons by a combined score of 0-13,884 while down by at least nine points with 35 or fewer seconds remaining prior to that game, as reported by ESPN Stats & Info. The current count is 1 through 13,884.
