Luka Doncic’s historic 60-point triple-double saves Mavs in OT

Jalen Brunson watched his first game in Dallas as an opponent from the sidelines of the New York Knicks, dressed in jeans and a light blue hoodie while sitting outside with a hip pain.

Luka Doncic made sure he had a front row show.

In the Mavericks’ 126-121 win on Tuesday, Doncic scored a career-high 60 points and added 21 rebounds and 10 assists in 47 minutes to assemble the most impressive, dominant and grueling triple-double of his career.

And NBA history.

Doncic broke Dirk Nowitzki’s single-game franchise record (53 points) and became the first player to ever set a triple-double with 60 points and 20 rebounds.

He surpassed Wilt Chamberlain (twice) and Elgin Baylor, the only one before him to compile triple-doubles with 50 points and 20 rebounds.

The Mavericks were nine points behind (112-103) with 33.9 seconds remaining in regulation, and prior to Tuesday, NBA teams were 0 for 13,884 over the last 20 seasons when they were at least nine points behind in the last 35 seconds, according to ESPN Stats and The Info.

Call it Luka Magic at its finest.

“The story of the game is written by the players and it was written again tonight,” said coach Jason Kidd. “It’s difficult for a player like Luka to do something that has never been done before. There were some great players before him. … Elgin Baylor, Wilt – he was in that class, and then he split up and did his own class, which is pretty cool.

The 23-year-old Doncic’s journey to becoming the youngest 50-point, 20-rebound triple-doubler in NBA history didn’t unfold in the final minutes of regulation and overtime.

But then Doncic’s fame shone brightest.

En route to 18 points in the fourth quarter, Doncic grabbed an offensive rebound and lofted in a putback layup with 15.4 seconds left to hit the 50-point mark for the second time in three games and one-and-one -Draw foul to cut the Mavericks’ deficit to three points (112-109).

Knicks guard Miles McBride missed one of two free throws after Dallas’ subsequent deliberate foul.

Spencer Dinwiddie’s 3-pointer with 9.4 seconds left sealed Doncic’s seventh triple-double of the season, temporarily cutting the Knicks’ lead to 1. Dallas fouled McBride again to get the ball back, at 115-112 with 7.7 seconds left .

New York coach Tom Thibodeau thought the best way to limit Doncic was to send him to the part of the pitch where he feels least comfortable: the foul line.

But maybe there’s no place where Doncic doesn’t like must-win scenarios.

After Quentin Grimes fouled him with 4.2 seconds left, Doncic hit his first free throw, paused for Kidd to bring on JaVale McGee as an extra rebounder for the upcoming intentional miss, and then rebounded the next free throw perfectly off the board.

He grabbed the rebound from a mess and threw the ball back through the net.

hiss

Tie at 115.

In the most classic of all Doncic reactions, his jubilation — shaking his fists, shuffling his feet — yelled at officers for a one-and-one foul.

“I didn’t want to get greedy,” Kidd said, “but I think he was fouled.”

Come into overtime, his poise and ruthless competitiveness trumped everyone.

Dallas beat the Knicks 11-6 in the extra five minutes to win its fourth straight game and beat New York at the American Airlines Center for the first time since 2017, 12 seconds of the 29 minutes of second half and overtime.

It’s a scintillating way to continue his recognition as reigning Western Conference Player of the Week.

After the game, team-mates showered Doncic with water as he entered the dressing room, but Kidd said his Slovenian superstar otherwise showed little egocentric emotion. Sitting in the chair by his locker, he drank water and a protein shake and scrolled through his phone.

Mavs Violations Updates: Ahead of Doncic’s presentation, Kidd provided injury updates on several key supporters.

Dorian Finney-Smith will miss at least two more weeks with the right adductor strain he suffered in Minnesota on December 19. The timeline follows the recovery of other players who suffered similar groin/inner thigh injuries this season, including Toronto’s Pascal Siakam and Golden State’s Andrew Wiggins, who each missed 10 games.

Dallas will also reevaluate Josh Green on Friday, three weeks since he sprained his right elbow against Milwaukee on Dec. 9.

Maxi Kleber, who underwent surgery on his right thigh muscle last week, is doing “great,” Kidd said, but will not return to the team this weekend for a two-game trip to San Antonio and Houston.

Meanwhile, Kemba Walker (left knee injury) and Frank Ntilikina (left knee pain) returned to play on Tuesday after a brief absence.

But that night, another Doncic masterpiece healed everyone.

For more coverage of Mavericks in the Dallas Morning News, click here.